


A Future in Crisis

by WolfMarauder



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars: Rebels, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Ahsoka is the Daughter's Chosen One, Ahsoka to the rescue, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Force Visions, Injury Recovery, Jedi Ahsoka Tano, Major Character Injury, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, The Force, The Force has had it with Anakin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-18
Updated: 2019-05-20
Packaged: 2019-05-24 18:51:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 22
Words: 41,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14960156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfMarauder/pseuds/WolfMarauder
Summary: Ahsoka has a vision that may change the course of the future.  She just needs to keep her master from falling, keep his wife from dying, and the Jedi Order from dying out... That's all.  The first step is returning the the Jedi Order and she finds she has more friends than she thought.  Possible spoilers for The Clone Wars, Ahsoka the novel, the prequel and sequel trilogies, and Star Wars: Rebels.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't finished watching Rebels yet... so I don't know what ultimately happens to Ahsoka. If she is alive... assume the vision just didn't show it. Because visions are weird like that.

Ahsoka woke in a cold sweat. The last thing she remembered was facing Vader... Anakin. She should be dead now.

She blinked in the sudden brightness and attempted to take stock of her surroundings. She could feel a soft bead under her, smell the sharp scent of cleaner and antiseptic, and hear rapid beeps and... her name. She squinted at the person beside her. A clone... “Rex?”

“That’s me. Oh, thank the Force,” he cried, “You’ve been out for days!”

“But you’re... young.”

“I’m getting older every day,” Rex assured her, puzzled.

“But when I saw you last, you were older. Your hair was white.”

“Are you sure you weren’t dreaming?”

“Yes... No... I don’t know. How long have you known me?”

“Three years... give or take a few months. What is wrong?”

“I need to talk to Master Kenobi. Now.”

“I can get General Skywalker...”

“NO!” She nearly shouted, then calmed herself, “No. Don’t tell Anakin I’m awake yet. Tell Obi-Wan to come but tell him not to tell anyone. Especially Anakin.”

“Okay, Commander,” Rex said skeptically. He pulled out his comm and did what she asked.

“Thanks, Rex.”

“I’m not going to pretend to know what is going on, but you need to rest. You’ve been unconscious for over a week.”

“Well, then. It sounds like I’ve gotten plenty of rest. Tell me where I am and how I got here. Please.”

Rex huffed but did as she asked. “General Skywalker asked you for some help covering security for a diplomatic mission that Senator Amidala was taking. He was at the front. Almost all the Jedi are these days. So, you and I were on her protection detail. It all seemed to be going well, but then there was a bomb.”

“A bomb! Is Padmé...?”

Rex shushed her and pushed her back into the pillows. “The Senator is fine. You need to calm down or the healers are going to toss me out. They only allowed me to stay in the first place because General Skywalker ordered me to keep him updated.”

“I’m countermanding that order, Rexter. I’m lead in this mission. Don’t tell Anakin anything until I give you the clear. Now tell me about the bomb.”

“You were doing a sweep of the house the senator was staying in, and there was an explosion. The boys and I ran in, and you were knocked out. The blast had thrown you across the room. Stars, sir, I thought you were dead at first. There was blood everywhere. Kix got you stable then we rushed you to the Temple Halls of Healing at the General’s orders.”

Ahsoka was still having trouble hearing about Anakin trying to save her, when the last thing she remembered was him trying to kill her. She could confront her feelings at being back in the temple later.

“Why did the bomb go off early? Was there any sign I was trying to disarm it?”

“We’re not so sure it did go off early. The bomb was remote-controlled, not timed, and there was a clear eye-line from the windows of the room to the woods behind the house. We think someone tried to kill you.”

Ahsoka scoffed. “Why would someone try to kill me, especially when Padmé is a possible target? I’m not important. I’m not even a Jedi anymore.”

“I’m sorry, sir, but you are important.”

Ahsoka hmmed. “Fine then. Of little strategic value.”

Rex looked at her in astonishment. “You are a great military leader.”

 _Not anymore_ , she wanted to say, _And not yet_. She had lived a war-torn life in her dream.

“When is Obi-Wan due?” She asked instead.

“You’re in luck. He is on planet now. He should be here any minute. Speak of the devil...”

Obi-Wan strode into the Halls of Healing, trying to assure Vokara Che that he was not disturbing a patient, she had called for him. Healer Che left them, and Obi-Wan was at Ahsoka’s bedside in moments. His mere presence was reassuring.

“Ahsoka,” he sighed in relief, “We were worried about you.”

“Thank you, Master Obi-Wan,” she said politely.

“What made you call me so urgently? And without Anakin.”

“I’ll... eh... excuse myself. I’ll follow your order, Commander. Don’t worry.” Rex walked out of the hall, saving her the awkwardness of asking him to leave.

“He always knows how to read a room,” Obi-Wan observed wryly, “Now tell me what the emergency is.”

“When I was unconscious, I had dreams. I think they may have been visions. They spanned decades.”

Obi-Wan leaned forward in interest. “What did you see?”

“Terrible things. The Republic fell, the Jedi were killed, and the temple burned.”

Obi-Wan recoiled in shock. “How does this happen? We are _winning_ the war!”

“The enemy is within. The Chancellor is the Sith Lord.”

Obi-Wan looked like a strong gust could knock him down. “The Chancellor... How?”

“He uses the war as an excuse to consolidate power. He triggers some sort of chip in the clones’ brains to kill the Jedi. Almost every Master and Padawan in the field dies.” Ahsoka didn't cry. She’d had a lifetime to come to terms and let go. Obi-Wan hadn’t had that time. His face was buried in his hands. “There is more...” she said softly.

“How can this possibly get worse?” Obi-Wan choked.

Ahsoka hesitated. The council’s lack of trust in Anakin pushed her master away in her visions and left him vulnerable. She knew that feeling. But Obi-Wan was her master’s master. Her friend. “I am speaking to my friend, Obi-Wan. Not Master Kenobi of the Jedi council. I need you to promise me that you will not tell anyone what I tell you, except in the direst of circumstances. It is a heavy burden, but you have to promise me. Tell no one. Especially not Anakin.”

“Anakin? Why Anakin?”

“Do you promise?” Ahsoka demanded sharply, her eyes not leaving Obi-Wan’s.

“I promise. I’ll tell no one.” She reached out with the Force and felt he was telling the truth.

“In some ways, this was the hardest blow. Anakin falls to the dark side. I’m sorry.”

Obi-Wan was paler than she’d ever seen him, even after Kadovo. “Anakin... It isn’t possible.”

“It is. I saw it. Now I need to stop it. We need to stop it.”

“How? If the Chancellor...”

“If we brake the Chancellor’s hold on Anakin, we stop his fall. I had visions of him as a boy. Chancellor Palpatine has been in his head since the invasion of Naboo. He is poisoning him against the Jedi. I think he was behind the Temple bombing and framing me. If Rex is right, I was the target of this bomb, not Padmé. Later missions will separate the two of you. Then he works on Anakin’s... friendship with Padmé. The Chancellor is trying to separate Anakin from his friends. He has been playing all of us. The Senate. The Separatists. The Council. Anakin especially. He wants the Chosen One for his own.”

“You speak with wisdom far beyond your years, young one.”

“I was thirty when I died in my vision. I’ve lived a lifetime in my head. Anakin’s lifetime and many lives of my own. I’ve been a Padawan, a Commander, Lady Tano, a General, Ashla the mechanic and the hero, and Fulcrum the rebel operative, but I died as Ahsoka Tano, former Padawan of Anakin Skywalker. It took me a lifetime to stop running then. This time, I will come home before it is too late. I may not be able to turn the tide alone, but I will not let it go out without me. If the Jedi will have me back, of course.” She paused, suddenly unsure. “I can find another way... I don’t want to assume...”

Obi-Wan held up his hand to silence her. “I know what my vote will be. I know there are several who would be happy to see you return. Not many will argue with Master Yoda.”

“I don’t know how to tell the council about all of this. I know I can’t tell them about Anakin. They may see his choice as made, but I know it is still hanging the the balance. He probably doesn’t even know there will be a choice yet. If they push him away, he will be ripe for the taking.”

“We tell them the truth—the parts they need to know, at least. From there, we will need to let the Force guide our actions.”

“Before we do anything, I need to talk to Anakin. When Rex comes back, I will tell him to report to Anakin that I am awake and need to speak with him, urgently. Just seeing him is going to be hard, I know it. After everything I saw...”

“He is still the Anakin we know,” Obi-Wan assured her, “Even now he is racing across the galaxy because you were injured and he wants to stand by you. I fear the war is taking its toll on him, especially since you were betrayed—yes, I do call it a betrayal. I thought it was normal. We are all under stress. We are all weary. But now that you tell me this... I don’t know how I missed it.”

“I didn’t know until much later that he fell. I lived years believing he was dead. I mourned him with all the other Jedi. After I found out, I wished he was dead. That would have been easier to take.”

“What will you tell him?”

“I will tell him about the Chancellor. I know he will have trouble accepting the truth, but he will at least be on his guard. He isn’t stupid. At least when he actually thinks he isn’t.”

“Maybe you should tell him all of it.”

“I will only do that if he asks, and then only very carefully. I can’t let him do something rash.”

“Oh, not Anakin,” Obi-Wan said dryly. “Rest, little one. You will need it when our friend arrives.”

“Wait,” Ahsoka interrupted, “You didn’t ask what happens to you.”

“No,” Obi-Wan answered, “I didn’t. Should I have? Do I either live or die on the light side? Yes or no?”

“Yes.”

“Then I don’t need to know more. You will know if there is a time when I do, and then you will tell me.”

“Yes, Master,” Ahsoka assured him.

“Now rest. I estimate it will be less than three standard hours before Anakin runs through that door.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snips and Skyguy are reunited

Anakin arrived in two standard hours. Ahsoka jolted awake to find Anakin running to her bedside and the door still swinging on its hinges. He must have broken speed records—and galactic travel laws—to get here so fast.

She groaned at the pain of sitting up too quickly. He helped guide her back down on the pillows. Ahsoka had to fight not to flinch away from him.

“You are not allowed to do that again, Snips. You scared me half to death!”

“Next time there is a bomb I will keep that in mind.”

“How are you feeling?”

Ahsoka lifted her brow. “Like I was thrown across a room by a bomb.”

Anakin grimaced. “Sorry.”

“For what?”

“I asked you to go on this mission.”

“I was happy to do it. I care about Padmé too, you know.”

He smiled at her boyishly. It was hard to reconcile the monster of her visions with him as he was now. This was her Anakin. Her Skyguy. Her Master.

“Rex said you needed to see me urgently. Do you know who set the bomb?”

Now was the hard part. “Sort of... while I was out, I had visions. Or a vision that went on and on. It was very clear.”

“I’m guessing it wasn’t a good one.”

“No, but first... Master, I want to come home. To the Jedi. To you. If you’ll have me.”

Anakin didn’t say anything for a long moment, but instead reached into a pouch at his belt. He put his hand in hers and she felt it before she saw it.

“You kept them?” she murmured, gazing at her Padawan beads in her palm. The tears welled in her eyes. After all she had seen, she didn’t think anything could surprise her again.

“Of course. I’ve never stopped hoping Ahsoka, but I liked having them close either way. I’ve never stopped being proud of you.” Anakin was tearing up now, too.

“Don’t cry, Master. If you cry, I’ll start crying, and I’ll never get through telling you about the vision.”

Anakin pulled her into a gentle hug, careful of her injuries. Ahsoka felt more like the young Padawan that felt safe with him—even in the fiercest of battles—and less like the thoroughly disillusioned woman she hand ended up as in her vision. She felt her hope that she would be able to save her Master growing.

“Now, tell me about your vision. I can feel that it upset you.”

“You won’t like what I saw. You won’t want to believe me.”

“I promise Ahsoka, I won’t dismiss what you saw. I know what can happen when visions aren’t taken seriously.”

Yes, and now Ahsoka knew what he was talking about and it didn’t make her feel better.

“Chancellor Palpatine is the Sith Lord.”  Anakin looked at her like she had sprouted a second head. He started to open his mouth to argue, but Ahsoka cut him off. “I can prove it to you. I saw other things too. Things that you already know that I shouldn’t that tie in to the plot. Tup and Fives died recently. Something went wrong in Tup’s brain and made him kill Knight Tiplar. Fives went with him to Kamino and found out that it was a chip in his brain. He had his own removed. The Chancellor lied and said that Fives tried to attack him and ordered that he be killed. He died before he could tell you and Rex, but the chip carried orders that would make the clones kill all the Jedi and override their free will. Only the Chancellor and a few Kaminoans know. In my vision that order is triggered at almost every Jedi is killed.”

Anakin looked like he wanted to be sick.

“I’m sorry, Master. I know you think of him as a friend.”

“Almost everyone?” He gritted out.

“I knew of three survivors when I was in the vision, besides myself. All the other Force users were either killed or corrupted to the dark side. Almost without exception, the Jedi were killed. Masters, padawans, and younglings alike. The temple was attacked and fell into the hands of the Sith.”

“Who survives?”

“I’m not sure I should say...”

“Please,” Anakin whispered, “I need to know.”

“Yoda and Obi-Wan are evacuated by Bail Organa. Obi-Wan is later killed by the Sith apprentice. Yoda returns to the Force after teaching a young Jedi discovered by Obi-Wan. Depa Billaba protects her Padawan long enough for him to escape. I survive for a while, but then I am killed by the same Sith who killed Obi-Wan.”

Anakin’s face was buried in his hands, so she couldn’t read his face. His presence in the force was screaming in pain and anger. “You said there were other things you knew.”

So far, he hadn’t asked the questions she dreaded having to answer. She let Anakin assume he dies on the battle field or in defense of the Temple. That was kinder. She was more than happy to change the subject. “I did see a happy one... I know you and Padmé are married. You should have told me sooner. I always knew there was something...”

Anakin had the grace to look embarrassed. “I know, Snips. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust you. I just knew that making you keep our secret wasn’t fair.”

“Well, now you don’t need to be alone with it. I will keep your secret.” She took his hand again. “I need to tell the council what I saw... and ask to be reinstated.”

“Ahsoka, if the Temple falls and we all die, you need to leave. You can live.”

“If I stay, I can help stop it. I can’t describe to you how painful it was in the days after the Jedi were killed. Every presence in the force that I had known since I was a youngling was full of pain and fear and then... snuffed out. I don’t want to feel that again.”

“I can’t make you go, can I?” Anakin asked resignedly.

“Not on your life, Master. You are stuck with me this time.”

Anakin sighed. “I guess this means we need to call the council, doesn’t it?”

“Master Obi-Wan should be calling them together now. He came by before you got here. I wanted to know if there was a chance for me to come back before I asked you.”

“I’m with you, Snips. We’ll figure it out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reviews are love! This is my first SW fanfic so I appreciate all feedback.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahsoka faces the Jedi Council.

To Ahsoka’s great frustration, she was unable to walk into the council room on her own two feet. Healer Che insisted that she use a hover chair. 

“You have a fractured thigh bone, a shattered knee cap, and a fractured vertebra.” Anakin reminded her when she grumbled about it.

“And this is going to fracture my dignity,” she insisted.

“You just woke up after having survived a bomb attack.  I don’t think anyone will think less of you for needing to heal. Especially since you are bringing information that could save us all,” Obi-Wan pointed out, “You have nothing to be ashamed of.” He patted her shoulder and went ahead of them into the council room.

A few moments later, the door opened to allow Anakin to push her in. She felt a flutter of nerves in the pit of her stomach, but Anakin sent waves of reassurance her way.  He pushed her chair through the door and positioned it in front of the council, then moved to stand by her side.

“Young Tano,” Yoda greeted her, “requested to return to the Jedi Order, you have. Most irregular, this is. But our mistakes, we acknowledge.  Time to heal and find peace, you needed.  Even when wronged, from the light you never strayed. Welcome to return to the Jedi, you are.”

Anakin placed his hand on her shoulder. Ahsoka looked up and met his grin.  It felt sacrilegious to smile when she came to give such dire news, but she couldn’t help it. It felt as though something slightly off kilter in the Force was set to rights. 

“Welcome home, Little Soka,” Master Koon said. She could tell from the crinkling of his cheeks that he was smiling behind the mask.

“Before you left, you were offered the rank of Knight,” Master Windu said, “If anything, you are more deserving of the title than before.”

Ahsoka inclined her head to them. “I thank you all, Masters, but I feel I have more to learn from my master and from the teachings of the Temple.  I wish remain his Padawan until my lessons are complete.”

“Great wisdom you have shown, and patience,” Yoda said mischievously, “Perhaps some lessons to teach you master, you have.  Some lessons to teach us all, yes. Agree to resume training of your Padawan, do you, young Skywalker?”

“I do,” Anakin said firmly, his hand never wavering from her shoulder.

“Her Padawan beads, give me.”

Anakin hesitated, but left Ahsoka’s side to hand the strand of beads to the grandmaster. Yoda opened his wizened hand to reveal another strand. 

“My Padawan beads, these are.”  The whole council was now looking at him with rapt attention.  Yoda laid the two strands side-by-side in his palm. With the force, he removed the end bead from his strand and held it in midair for the whole room to see. “My final bead, this was. A stone from Illum, it is carved from. A kyber crystal, it is not, but from a sacred place it is.  To you, I give this. Believe it will be the final bead on your strand too, I do.”  He guided the bead to the end of her strand and returned the strand to Anakin. “Your Padawan you may reinstate, Young Skywalker.”

Anakin looked shell-shocked as he fastened the beads to her Akul tooth headdress. She was sure she looked the same. She ran her fingers down the strand, rubbing the final bead between them. It was cold, like Illum, but felt imbued with the light from the crystals that had surrounded it centuries ago. “I... I am honored, Master Yoda. Thank you.”

“Earned it, you have, Padawan Tano,” he nodded a small bow to her, one that Anakin and the council mirrored. Ahsoka bit her lip. She would not cry like a youngling.  She reached her hand up, and when Anakin took it she used it to pull herself to her feet. She had to lean heavily on Anakin and the chair but was able to stand.  She returned their bows as well as she could. “Thank you, Masters. But I didn’t come here just to ask to return to the Order.”

“Yes. Master Kenobi said you had visions while you were unconscious,” Master Windu said, studying her over his steepled fingers, “What did you see?”

Ahsoka spoke calmly and clearly as she could. She had rehearsed this over and over in her head. Anakin’s grip on her arm tightened reassuringly. She drew a steadying breath. “I saw the fall of the Republic, the rise and fall of the Empire, and the Republic’s rebirth. I saw the near extermination of the Jedi, the death of the Sith, and the birth of something new. None of us live to see it.  The vision ended in tenuous balance, but at the cost of millions of lives.  I saw the Sith Lord, and I saw him defeated.”

The gathered council members, with the exception of Obi-Wan and Yoda, looked aghast.

“Seen the Temple fall to our enemies, so to, have I,” Yoda said.  The council was whispering amongst themselves. “See the Sith Lord’s identity, I did not.  See, who did you, Padawan Tano?”

“Chancellor Palpatine.”  The council room erupted in an indistinguishable cacophony of murmurs.

“A grave accusation, this is, but the truth I feel in it.  Meditate on this we must.”

“I know this is difficult to believe, but please move the younglings and their masters to somewhere safe and hidden at the very least. In my vision, no one in the Temple survives.”  Such an act of violence on innocent lives was an affront to all the Jedi believed.  Plo Koon radiated grief most strongly. He was responsible for bringing many younglings to the temple, after all. 

“What enemy is able to overcome every Master and Knight in the Temple?  Surely the Sith does not act alone,” Shaak Ti spoke. 

“The Jedi are declared traitors after unsuccessfully confronting the Chancellor. He activated an override chip in the clones that forced them to kill all Jedi.”

Shaak Ti lost her near-impeccable composure. “Fives tried to warn me. Then Chancellor assured me that they would investigate. I gave him the evidence!  I should have trusted my suspicions!”

“I don’t believe he tried to attack, as the Chancellor said.  He was killed because he knew too much.” Anakin said. 

“Getting the chip out of all our troops quickly and quietly must be our first action,” Shaak Ti said, “To compromise the free will of another sentient being is against the Force. It is the only way to protect ourselves and them.”

“The chips will also be valuable evidence against the Chancellor. Senators Bail Organa, Mon Mothma, and Padmé Amidala supported the Jedi.  They can be trusted with the information,” Ahsoka said. She looked around the room and blushed a bit.  She was no longer a general to give commands, after all.

“I agree with Padawan Tano,” Master Windu said.

“Once the chips are removed, the troopers will have free will again. In my vision, I was stationed on Mandalore when Order 66 went out and Captain Rex of the 501st helped me fake my death. He had his chip removed after Fives. He was going to send evidence to the temple but was too late. I’m not sure if he has had his removed yet.”

“Skywalker,” Windu instructed, “Ask your captain if he has had the chip removed and ask him if he would be willing to have it removed and give it to us as evidence if he hasn’t.  He probably is investigating on his own now, if his course is the same as in Tano’s vision. If you believe we can trust him, he will be able help us plan how to free his brothers.”

“Yes, Master,” Anakin agreed with a bow.  He was not the least bit petulant at being told what to do by Master Windu, as he would normally be. It made her quirk a little smile as she allowed Anakin to return her to the detested hover chair.

“Meditate together, we must, Young Tano,” Yoda instructed her, “Master Obi-Wan, join us, you will?”

“Certainly, Master,” Obi-Wan answered.

“Master Ti, accompany Anakin, you will. A special respect for you, the clones have.”  Shaak Ti bowed her head in agreement.

“Everyone else, review missions involving the Chancellor and missions taken at his personal direction.  Meditate on what we have learned. For now, keep silent on the matter outside this room. We don’t know where the Chancellor has ears and eyes,” Mace instructed. “As Padawan Tano suggested, we will move the younglings off planet and into hiding before we put any plans into action.  We will send the youngest Padawans with the crèche masters to keep them away from the worst of the fighting. If the worst should happen, the Order must survive.”

All the council members murmured in somber agreement, then dispersed to carry out their assignments.  Plo Koon stopped beside her and crouched to be at her eye-level. “I am proud of you, my foundling. I carried you here first, but you have carried yourself back. You have been very brave, to join us again when you know what danger awaits us.”  He patted her cheek softly with his clawed hand.  “I hope you will forgive me.”

“I forgave you before I had my vision.  The ones I hadn’t forgiven already, I forgave while I was in that life. I saw them die. I _felt_ it. Many council members died defending the younglings. I had years to grapple with the grief and the guilt and the resentment. It is hard to put that Ahsoka away now. I know I haven’t really seen and felt those things, and hopefully never will, but the forgiveness is still there. I now know that the masters are mortal too. I sort of knew that before. I knew that they made mistakes, but they didn’t seem as fallible then.  I saw them all at the end, trying to win a game they hadn’t known they were playing. They did their best with what their experience taught them. It is easier to forgive mistakes that hurt me, having been in a command and having made so many mistakes of my own.”

“I can see you carry a great weight of experience on your shoulders.  Remember you don’t have to carry it alone.  You are far wiser than I would wish for you at this age, Little ‘Soka.”  She didn’t know what to say, so she hugged him instead.  He followed the others out of the council room.

“You’ll be okay?” Anakin asked. She could tell he was worried about leaving her.

“I’ll be fine. Go with Master Ti and help our vod’e.”  He fell in beside the older Togruta, looking back over his shoulder at her.  She nodded encouragingly. She knew he and Shaak Ti would protect their men.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! As always, feedback is appreciated!


	4. Chapter 4

Once Anakin and the council filed out, Ahsoka was alone with Obi-Wan and Master Yoda.  She tried to ignore the muttering from some council members and the stolen glances in her direction.  It hurt to look at them.  They were still like ghosts to her.  Overall, the meeting went better than she had dared hope.  Obi-Wan took Anakin’s place next to her, keeping a grounding hand on her shoulder.  “Keep your head up, little one,” he said quietly.  She turned to look at him instead of the Jedi whispering amongst themselves.

“Do you think they really believed me?” she asked doubtfully.

“I think a good many of them did.  More of them will be convinced by the evidence on the clone chips.  We are asking for a large leap of faith, but you spoke well and were very brave.  There have been many things… obscured from our view.  Your visions have filled in those empty places and overlapped with what others have seen.”

Master Yoda hopped down from his stool and moved to stand by her and Obi-Wan serenely and waved the stragglers on.  He turned to her.  “Meditate and find a healing trance, you must. Injured by the attack in the body, you are. Injured by the visions, your mind is.  Guide you, Master Kenobi and I will.”

Ahsoka tried not to shift uncomfortably in her chair.  “I’m sorry Master, but isn’t it more important to examine the visions further?”

“We cannot do more until we have helped the vod’e. If we trigger the future events before all the chips are removed or disabled, we will be as vulnerable as we are now. We will send the younglings away as soon as we can do it quietly and we will have transports at the ready at all times, just in case.  That is all we can do for now.  You need to heal. You are also important.”

Ahsoka smiled at him. He didn’t say she was an important piece of the plan, but that _she_ was important. She often had trouble seeing herself as more than a means to an end since her life had moved conflict to conflict.  “Thank you, Masters,” she answered with a small bow of her head.

Obi-Wan steered her chair out of the council room, and matched Yoda’s sedate place to a meditation chamber.  He lifted her into his arms like she was a child and laid her on the mat. He and Yoda drew cushions to either side of her and sat in a meditation pose.

“Easier to heal, the body is, than the mind.  Start there, we will.  Your injuries, tell us.”

Ahsoka thought back to the chart Healer Che had read her. She moved head to toe. “A small crack in my left montral, but it isn’t affecting my hearing too much. A concussion. Cracked ribs on the left side. Fracture in the vertebra, four up from the bottom. Its disc ruptured as well. I think my spine is okay though. Healer Che said the numbness in my feet and legs is from the swelling putting pressure on the spinal cord. The left femur is fractured and the left knee cap is pretty much busted. Healer Che said the burns up my right side were pretty bad when I came in, but the bacta has helped that.”

Obi-Wan snorted in exasperation. “You’ve really out done yourself this time.  What did Vokara recommend for treatment?”

“Rest,” Ahsoka spat like it was a dirty word. “She said healing trances and bacta would help speed things up, but I will need to do some physical training after my rest period is over.”

“Vokara knows what she is doing.  How long until your rest period is over?”

“She said ‘When I say it’s over,’ so I hope this healing trance goes well.”

  None of them were experienced healers, but they were the ones she was most familiar meditating with. Finding a trance would be easier with them; considering the psychic component of her trauma, they would be better able to prevent her visions pushing in.  Obi-Wan had been careful in the selection of the second master who would assist him.  They were limited to the Masters on the council in case they caught glimpses of her vision while meditating.  Unfortunately, there was a lot of water under that particular bridge.  Master Unduli would have been a more logical choice due to her experience as a battlefield healer but after how things ended up with Barriss, Ahsoka would find it difficult to trust her.  Master Yoda was a bit of a wild card and would always protect the Order first, but she trusted he would at least be willing to give the unorthodox a try.  The nature of war meant that Obi-Wan and Master Yoda both had experience in battle field healing and directing their own healing trances.

“Focus, you must. Upon the force, you must call. Guide you, Obi-Wan and I will.”

Neither one of them touched her, but she could feel them channeling their strength through her, coaxing it towards her injuries. She focused on the bones knitting together, the raw edges finding one another and becoming whole again.  She allowed herself to empty her mind and let the Force flow through her.  Gradually, she felt her masters pulling her back to awareness.

“Don’t sit up too fast,” Obi-Wan cautioned her, “A healing trance is not restful and your healing is not complete.  You may be a bit dizzy.”  He helped her rise to a sitting position with an arm across her back.

“Feel any better, do you, young Tano?” Yoda asked.  He was at her eye-level since she was sitting on the floor.

Ahsoka tried to take stock of her body.  “My legs are a bit less numb so my back must be better, but that means that I can feel the breaks in my leg more.  My montral feels completely normal, though.”

“We shouldn’t attempt more today,” Obi-Wan cautioned, “You will exhaust yourself.”

“But Master…” Ahsoka began, but Yoda held up a hand to stop her.

“Impatient you are, young one.  Allow both body and mind to heal, you must.  Rest, you will.”

She nodded in reluctant agreement.  Obi-Wan helped her back into her chair.  Yoda dismissed them kindly, and Obi-Wan pushed her down the halls towards their rooms.  It had been a tough sell to convince Master Che to allow her to leave the Halls of Healing but having her sharing an apartment with her Master and Obi-Wan to care for her had placated the healer.  Ahsoka knew that the healer must suspect something was afoot since she was no longer in charge of her force-healing and would not be permitted to begin mind-healing sessions.  Since arrangements for Ahsoka’s further care had been made by senior members of the Council, Master Che could not dispute orders and discharged her patient into her masters’ care with reluctance.

“Can Padmé come see me?” Ahsoka asked when she was sure that they were alone in the corridor.

“Senator Amidala?” he asked in surprise.

“She’s a friend,” Ahsoka defended, “And since the bomb went off in her quarters, I would like to see her in one piece.  She is also a valuable ally.”

“You are supposed to be resting,” he protested.

“And seeing her safe will help me rest.”

Ahsoka could practically see his put-upon expression in her mind.  “Fine.  But you are taking a nap until she arrives.”

“Whatever you say, Master.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Hopefully the next chapter will be up in the next couple of days. I futzed with this one for a while and I'm still not totally happy with it. Writing Yoda is weird. This doesn't move the plot too much, but I just wanted someone to take care of Ahsoka! She deserves it! As always, reviews are love.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Padme visits... and Ahsoka drops a bombshell

Anakin was waiting for them when Ahsoka and Obi-Wan returned to their apartment.  He had clearly not been there for long, since he was just setting down stacks of flimsiplast in front of a datapad on the table.  Some of the tension on his face dissipated when he looked up and saw them there.  “Snips!” he cried, playfully flicking her uninjured montral, “Feeling any better?”

  “I’ll be running circles around you soon, Skyguy.  Just you wait!”  Ahsoka could tell that he was trying to keep the mood light.  She could feel the stress leaking through their bond.  Her master was _afraid_ and he was trying to comfort her.  She could return the favor.

“She is _supposed_ to be resting, Anakin,” Obi-Wan admonished them, “The healing isn’t finished and she won’t be cleared for training until Healer Che has taken scans.”

“Killjoy,” Ahsoka muttered, “My _grandpa-_ master is making me take a nap now.  Can you call Padmé and ask her to come visit?  Don’t tell her I’m awake or talk about anything else.  Just tell her that you are back on planet and you want to see her at the temple.”

“What’s going on, Ahsoka?” Anakin asked, a bit defensively she noted with amusement.

“I want to see Padmé and I don’t trust any communications to the Senate to be secure.  The longer the Chancellor believes I’m in a coma, the better.”

“Can’t this wait until after you’ve slept for a couple of hours at least?” Obi-Wan pleaded.

“I’ll take a nap on the couch until she gets her and by then it will probably be time for me to eat anyway.”  Obi-Wan looked to Anakin for back-up, but he was already dialing on his commlink.  Anakin shrugged innocently at Obi-Wan’s exasperation.  “Force preserve me from scheming padawans,” he muttered under his breath.  Ahsoka grinned at him smugly and used his arm as leverage to hobble to the couch.  She really was very tired, so it didn’t take long to drop off.

Padmé was standing in their apartment just over an hour after Anakin called her.  Obi-Wan had said she had been by a few times to see her while she was unconscious, but it was good to see her unharmed.  Padmé had paused when she saw that Ahsoka was in a hover chair, her greeting dying on her lips.  Her face contorted in guilt.  “Oh, Ahsoka…” she began.

“I’m fine, Padmé,” Ahsoka reassured her, and opened her arms to her.  Padmé pulled her in a gentle hug. Ahsoka reached out into the force subtly and... yes... she could feel the two little presences in the Force alongside Padmé’s. They were still very small. She probably wouldn’t have noticed them if she wasn’t looking for them.  She wondered if Padmé knew yet.  Did Anakin?  Surely, he would have asked her about them when they were talking about her visions if he knew.  He had been off planet for a couple of months to the best of her knowledge.  That meant they were a maximum of seven months away from when all Sith Hell broke loose in her vision. Ahsoka wished she could meet the news of her master’s younglings with complete joy, but she knew that even as they shone their light into the galaxy, all could be plunged into darkness. 

“It is good to see you awake, Ahsoka,” Padmé said, breaking her out of her grim thoughts.

“I’m glad you are safe,” Ahsoka answered, “This looks worse than it is. Healer Che is being excessively cautious and my masters are only too happy to mother hen me.”

Padmé rolled her eyes. “Tell that to someone who wasn’t there when you were pulled out of the rubble. Your masters’ stubbornness is rubbing off on you, I see.”

“Will you stay with us for dinner?” Ahsoka asked, “Basically all I’m cleared to do is sleep, eat, and meditate, so it will be good to have company.”  She winked at Anakin when Obi-Wan’s back was turned.

Anakin rolled his eyes at her but Padmé smiled broadly. “I’d be delighted.”

Anakin helped her from the chair to the cushions surrounding the low table. Padmé watched him fuss over the pillows supporting Ahsoka’s back with a tender look in her eyes.  Ahsoka was pretty sure she knew Anakin was going to be a father soon.

They ate the simple fare that made up most meals in the Temple. Ahsoka grumbled about being limited to a blander-than-normal protein broth for “healing purposes.”  All her teeth were intact, thank you very much.  Her protestations fell on deaf ears.  Her token complaints were halfhearted anyway. She was far too happy to be surrounded by her family to care what was in her bowl. Anakin lit up in Padmé’s presence as always. Even Obi-Wan seemed comforted by his former Padawan’s lightened mood. Ahsoka allowed herself to be wrapped up in their conversation and put aside all worries of the future for an hour or so. Just as she was willing to die for future moments like this one, she knew better than to take the present for granted.

When the plates were cleared, she knew it was time to get down to business. “It is good to have you here, Padmé,” she said sweetly, “As happy as I am to be back with my masters it is always good to have some _girl talk_.” She looked meaningfully at Obi-Wan. He didn’t seem to be getting it. She rolled her eyes. She felt out the connection that she had to him through the Force, strengthened by their recent shared meditation, and pushed the word _“Go!”_ against his mind. He looked at her and she widened her eyes in exasperation then looked between him, Anakin, and the door.

Obi-Wan stood up from the table. “I am going to make some tea.  Anakin, come help me.”

“But master, I am...”

“I really need your _help_ with the _tea_ Anakin.”

“I moved it to a lower shelf,” he grumbled, but followed his former master out the door.

Ahsoka and Padmé exchanged a look, then dissolved into giggles.

“I see you are a Padawan again,” Padmé observed, nodding to her Padawan beads.  Ahsoka should have known that little detail would not escape her notice.

“I suppose I have just seen what is important.  The Force was calling me home, so I decided to stay.”

“I’m glad.  Anakin has missed you.  He was so upset at what the Council and the Republic did to you.” Ahsoka’s stomach churned with guilt at leaving him, but Padmé didn’t seem to notice.  There was something to be said for friends that couldn’t sense your emotions.  “Now, I know there is something you wanted to tell me without them here,” Padmé said.

“Does Anakin know about the babies?” Ahsoka asked, the words all tumbling out her mouth.

Padmé went pale. “Babies?”

_Kriff_ , Ahsoka thought, _never thought I’d be a pregnancy test_. “Sorry. I had a vision... I thought you knew.”

“I know about _a_ baby, yes. One baby.  You said _babies_.”

“Um... surprise?” Ahsoka said awkwardly.

A smile twitched on Padmé’s lips and she caressed her stomach.  “I suppose you know the gender, too?”

“Do you want to know?  We can wait until Skyguy is here so you can find out together.”  Padmé nodded.  “How far along are you?” Ahsoka asked.

“Almost three months, why?” She asked, seeing Ahsoka’s grimace. Just over six months, then.

“There was more in the vision...” Ahsoka began.

“That sounds ominous,” Padmé joked, but then realized Ahsoka wasn’t smiling.  “Okay so it’s bad... how bad?”

Ahsoka ran through the bare basics of her visions again, omitting what happens to her and Anakin.  If she saves him, she can save her. Padmé was, understandably, aghast.

“I trusted the Chancellor. He appointed me to my seat in the Senate.  We have had our political differences lately but how...?”

“He has hidden it well.  Right now, only the council and Anakin know. No one besides me knows everything.  We are putting events in motion to head off the Jedi purge, and when they are in place we will need to reach out to allies in the senate. It cannot appear as though the Jedi are attempting to depose the Chancellor in a coup.  Don’t mention that I’m awake to anyone.  I think my visions aren’t being clouded right now because he thinks I am out of the picture.”

“I won’t tell anyone now, but I’ll keep my ears open for allies.”

“Thank you, Padmé.”

“And the babies?  You asked how far along I was like it had some sort of impact on the timeline.”

“In my vision, the Empire is created the day your children are born.  Does anyone know about them yet?  I don’t doubt that Sidious is monitoring your communications and may even have your office and apartment bugged.”

“I only just found out myself.  Sabé may suspect since she made my appointment at the medical center under her name.  I didn’t want to tell anyone before Anakin.  Please, Ahsoka, do my babies escape the purge?  I know that Ani’s children are almost certain to be Force-sensitive.”

“In the future I saw, they do. The grow up and save the galaxy.  We maybe won’t tell them that. Don’t want them getting a big head like their father.”

Padmé stroked the almost invisible bump of her stomach with tears in her eyes.  “Of course they do,” she said with a watery laugh.

“Can I… can I feel them?” Ahsoka asked.  Padmé nodded her head and Ahsoka reached out to place her hand over where the younglings were growing.  She could _feel_ them.  They were still too small for her to feel them moving, but she could feel them there.  Their presence in the force was small, but so _bright._ She realized that she was crying, too.  _Force_ , she was tired of crying.  “I promise, Padmé, I will do everything I can to protect your younglings.  Anyone who wants to hurt them will have to go through me.  They and Anakin and you are my family.”

Padmé hiccoughed on a sob.  She held Ahsoka’s face gently in her hands.  “Keep yourself safe, too.  These little ones will need their big sister.”  Ahsoka gave up all pretense of composure and allowed herself to be wrapped up in the warmth that was Padmé and her little lights.  Her family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm always conflicted about how Ahsoka fits in the family since Anakin is a sort-of father figure but also like an older brother... so she is sort of both a sister and an aunt to the twins. I just know that she is 100% part of the family. Obi-Wan too. Next up... Padme and Anakin get some alone time while Obi-Wan and Ahsoka have some more bonding time!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahsoka and Obi-Wan have a heart-to-heart and Anakin gets to share some big news...
> 
> “Master... Obi-Wan... There is something I’ve been meaning to tell you...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains an open conversation about mental health. I don't think there is anything triggering, but I would like to give a heads up if anyone is particularly sensitive.

Anakin and Obi-Wan returned with a tray of tea far later than should have been necessary.

“Obi-Wan insisted we borrow some of Master Yoda’s tea. He said Yoda got a new blend we had to try,” Anakin grumbled, “Of course, that led to a lecture on the history of this particular blend and the entire process of preparing the leaves.”  He set cups in front of Ahsoka and Padmé, then flopped down next to his wife.

“It’s very nice.  Tell Master Yoda ‘thank you’ for me,” Ahsoka said, taking a sip of tea that tasted just like the blend the old master had favored since she had been a youngling.  The scent was pleasantly earthy and familiar.  She watched Padmé glance nervously at Anakin over the rim of her cup a few times, and finally took pity.

“Can you take me to the Room of a Thousand Fountains, Master Obi-Wan?  I think a bit of meditation will help me get some sleep.” She looked up at him with the wide, innocent eyes that he always caved to, though he had to be wise to the trick by now.  

He lifted his cup of tea exasperatedly. “I just sat down, Ahsoka.”

“Please?  We can bring our tea with us.  I can’t walk there myself.”

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes. “You can’t be an invalid only when it suits you,” he complained, but his words lacked venom and he was gentle when he arranged her in the hover chair.  “The two of you behave while we are gone,” he told Anakin and Padmé. Ahsoka smirked at their twin looks of contrived innocence.

“You know something, don’t you, little one?” Obi-Wan said as he pushed her down the dimly lit corridors.

“I’m not sure what you mean, Master. There are lots of things I know.”

“Very funny. I did share the Senator’s protection detail with Anakin, you know. Plus, I’m not blind. Since when are you their wingman?”

“It is a Padawan’s duty to be a wingman.”

“In star fighters, maybe.  Ahsoka...”

“All in the fullness of time, Master. Patience is a virtue, after all.”

“You have one vision that alters the course of history and now you think you know everything.  _Kids_ ,” he snorted.  Ahsoka giggled.

“I really did miss this place,” Ahsoka said when they arrived at the Room of a Thousand Fountains. The tricking of water echoed all around them. The warmth of growing things was soothing. “There is so much about the temple that I took for granted.”  Her mind’s eye could see the foliage around her burning, the stone of the fountains cracking, and bodies floating in the water turning it red with blood.  Her stomach turned.  She tried to gather up her fear and the regrets that belonged to another life and release them into the Force.

“It is one of my favorite places,” Obi-Wan answered. He sat on a bench next to her while they sipped their tea.  She knew he had to notice her feelings, but he didn’t press her.

 “Do you think we can save him?  Save everyone?” Ahsoka finally asked.

“I think we have a better chance than we did before.  Anakin will make his own choices. The best we can do is make sure he makes his choice in his right mind.”

Ahsoka appreciated that he was not giving her empty platitudes.  “I feel guilty about hiding something from him.  When I work with the rebellion, I am something of an intelligence officer. Fulcrum. I make sure that every rebel cell gets the intel it needs and nothing more.  It shouldn’t be so difficult to withhold information that I know could be dangerous now.”

“You aren’t that person yet,” Obi-Wan said, “You have learned a lot from her and you are more like her than you may have been before, but you are in an entirely different context.  Of course, you feel differently about the decisions you are making.  I am honored that you chose to confide in me as much as you have.”

“I have told you more than anyone else,” Ahsoka confirmed.

“But you won’t tell me about what’s going on with Anakin and Padmé?”

“I suspect you will find out soon enough.  Now, I wasn’t entirely making up needing to meditate.”

“I’m glad you have learned to appreciate it.”

“Like I said, I’ve learned to appreciate a lot of things I took for granted. The force isn’t balanced now, but after the purge it _hurt_ to meditate for months, maybe years, after.  Everything was pain and darkness.  I had to relearn to find the light while also keeping my own presence in the Force hidden.  Then, meditation was all I had.  I was alone.”

Obi-Wan took her hand. “You don’t have to be strong for everyone all the time, young one”

“I’m terrified to lose everyone I care about. I don’t want to live through that again. I survived the purge, but for what?  To live long enough to see everyone close to me die?  I try not to get attached to my operatives in the rebellion, but I send them on missions and lose them again and again. I worked with the information I had available, but it wasn’t always good enough. _I_ wasn’t always good enough. I just kept watching people die, and it never got easier. Then it was my turn to not come home from the mission.  I was so tired. I was devastated because I learned that Anakin had fallen. I wouldn’t leave him again, so I forced my friends to leave me.  I made a child watch me die.  I did it to protect them, but I know how survivor’s guilt feels. I think dying might be easier.”

“As Jedi, it is our duty to live our lives for others. Sometimes living is the most difficult part of that edict.”

Ahsoka looked at her master’s master and his contemplative look. She realized suddenly how little she knew about him. She knew the mundane things that came with living in close quarters with someone for almost four years. She knew many of his quirks and could usually predict what he would think about something, but he may as well have come into existence the day he was knighted. She didn’t know anything about who he was before that. She didn’t know how he saw himself or what his weaknesses were. To her, he had always seemed like a perfect Jedi. Maybe he cared too much, but very few masters didn’t.  She recognized in herself the self-centeredness of youth.  Anakin had always worn his emotions on his sleeve, while Obi-Wan was quieter. When they were struggling, she had depended on him to be unaffected. That he may be struggling as much as she was had never crossed her mind.

“Will you promise to find me if everything fails?  Instead of moping on a desert rock for nineteen years. Hypothetically, of course.”

Obi-Wan looked offended. “I would do no such thing.”  Ahsoka tapped her own head with a grin. Obi-Wan groaned. “That is insufferable.”

The fountains trickled around them, filling the quiet. Ahsoka and Obi-Wan matched their breaths, not quite in full meditation.  She could feel Obi-Wan brushing against her mind in invitation.  She lowered her mental shields, allowing him a glimpse of her anxiety. He helped her examine it, then release it into the Force. “I would recommend you see a mind healer,” Obi-Wan suggested after they had resurfaced. 

Ahsoka crinkled her nose in distaste.  “I don’t see how someone sifting through my head will fix anything. Besides, I can’t risk a mind healer seeing my visions though. It is too risky.”

“What about Master Koon?  He has learned the mind healing that Kel Dorrians are renowned for.  They are equally known for their discretion.  On Kel Dor, breaking a patient’s confidence is one of the most serious infractions a healer can commit.”

Ahsoka hummed. Where she felt too distant from Mater Luminara and the other masters, she felt too close to Master Plo.  “I don’t know if I want him to see the things I’ve seen and felt.  I never fell, but I never returned to the Jedi path in the future I saw.  I just sort of… ran parallel to it.  I don’t want him to be disappointed in me.”

“I felt the same when the council told me to see a mind healer after my master died.  I was ashamed because I thought that meant I wasn’t handling my emotions well enough. The sessions were helpful, though. The healer helped me work through some of the more difficult emotions tied up in my grief and the new responsibility of raising Anakin. I kept going even after the prescribed number of sessions was up and I think it helped me be more balanced.  The war and my council duties have made the sessions fall to the wayside, which is a shame since I could use them now more than ever.  I think that you would be surprised to find how busy the temple mind healers are.  There is no shame in feeling emotions, Ahsoka.  It is all about how you deal with them.  A mind healer could help you with them.”

Ahsoka was surprised to hear that Obi-Wan—who would probably insist he didn’t need to see a medic even if he was bleeding out—would voluntarily go to a mind healer.  Though perhaps it did make sense considering how highly he valued mindfulness and mediation.  Knowing that even he needed help sometimes was reassuring, but she wasn’t sure she was ready to make that step herself.  “I will think about it,” she told him.

“That is all I ask.  Know that I am willing to talk to you anytime, even if I am not a mind healer.”

“That would be… good.  Thank you.”

They sat in silent meditation for a while after that, until a strong wave of _joy, fear, love, hope_ washed over them from Anakin, overwhelming both of them for a few moments.

“I think that is our cue to head back,” Ahsoka said when they had caught their breath.

“You think so?” He asked sardonically. He passed Ahsoka his cup of tea and rubbed at the place where he had spilled it on his tunic in surprise at the sudden burst of emotion from his Padawan.  “This is going to stain. You could have at least warned me.”

“I’m sorry your wardrobe has not featured heavily in my visions.  They are already a bit crowded,” she quipped.

“Well, since I am the only one who doesn’t know what just happened, I would really like to find out.”  Obi-Wan pushed her toward their apartment, his pace quicker than it was on their way to the Room of a Thousand Fountains.

“Just... when you find out... don’t lose it,” Ahsoka said hesitantly.

“I’ve been waiting for Anakin to tell me about his ‘secret’ relationship for years!  I don’t think it will take me by surprise.”

“You say that now...” Ahsoka taunted. She couldn’t deny her nerves, though they were both catching enough waves of anxiety from Anakin to disguise hers. In the past and in her vision, Anakin had been afraid to tell Obi-Wan about Padmé because he was afraid of his master’s disapproval. Or worse, that Obi-Wan would rat him out to the Council. Given what she knew Obi-Wan was helping her cover up now, that fear seemed ridiculous. Obi-Wan’s reaction to the twins would deeply impact his relationship with Anakin, and Ahsoka needed their trust in each other solid for her fledgling plans to be successful.  She knew Anakin’s insecurity. If Obi-Wan wasn’t accepting almost immediately, they would lose ground.

“If he tells you everything—and I suspect he will—It will be a big shock. But it is good news. I promise.”

Obi-Wan’s steps slowed.  “Now you are worrying me.”

“It’s just... he is going to need you for this. They are going to need us both.  It is happy news that the council won’t approve of. Let yourself be happy about it.”

She could feel Obi-Wan’s apprehension echoing her own, but they were already at the apartment door. Neither one of them wanted to make the first move. _Too late to turn back now_.  “Maybe knock first?” She offered.  Obi-Wan reached out and knocked on the door sharply, then paused a few moments before opening it.

Ahsoka was relieved to find Anakin and Padmé presentable, even if their hair was mussed and their eyes were red.  Anakin had an arm over Padmé’s shoulders and looked up at them with an expression reminiscent of a youngling caught sneaking extra sweets.

“Master... Obi-Wan... There is something I’ve been meaning to tell you,” he began, seeming to search for the words. Ahsoka had to bite back a chuckle.

“I’m glad you have finally gotten around to it,” Obi-Wan teased, “What is this secret?”

“Padmé and I are married.”

Obi-Wan did look surprised at that. “ _Married?_   When did that happen?”

“Right after that first time on Geonosis...” Anakin muttered.

“And I assume my invitation got lost in the mail?”

“I didn’t think that you would... approve.”

“Oh, I would have lectured you on attachment and the dangers and warned you against it—no offense Padmé—but I would have caved.  Eventually.  I’ve known that the two of you were in some sort of relationship for years.”

“There is something more.”

“More than a marriage you have hidden from me for over four years?”

“A bit...” Anakin scratched the back of his head nervously. “Would you prefer to be an uncle or a grandpa?”

For a moment no one moved or spoke. The unflappable Obi-Wan seemed to have met his match. Finally, he let out a short laugh. “I assume this isn’t because the two of you have decided to adopt Ahsoka civilly as well as by the Padawan bond?”

“I’m pregnant, Obi-Wan,” Padmé said calmly, “Anakin is their father.”

“You never do anything by halves, do you, my old Padawan?”

Padmé laughed out loud at that. “You don’t know the half of it. I’m having twins!”

Obi-Wan gaped. Ahsoka thought it was a comical expression on her grand-master’s face.

Padmé turned to her.  “Ahsoka?  Now that we are all together, would you like to tell us the genders?”

Ahsoka held out the moment and could feel the curiosity growing all around her.  “A boy and a girl!” Ahsoka could feel the joy bubbling up from everyone in the room. Anakin and Padmé were looking at each other with disgustingly besotted expressions. Anakin pressed a soft kiss to her forehead, then pulled Ahsoka into a tight hug before moving to Obi-Wan. Anakin hesitated. Obi-Wan was studying Padmé’s midriff like he could see something there. It appeared as though his master was working through a difficult calculation and suddenly tears were welling up in his eyes.

“You all right there, Gramps?” Ahsoka prodded.

“I can feel them,” he choked, “They are beautiful, Anakin.”  Then he had his Padawan in a hug, which seemed to surprise Anakin.  “I haven’t felt anything so bright since I was a child.”  Ahsoka could feel it too, the _hope_.  She had been very young when the Sith resurfaced, but she remembered the light from before.

“You aren’t disappointed in me, Master?  I broke the Code,” Anakin said quietly.

“I’m not disappointed,” he reassured him, “I’m going to be an uncle!  I swear Anakin, I will do all I can to protect your younglings, no matter what happens.”

“These babies should be the safest in the galaxy,” Padmé observed, “Since Ahsoka has already sworn to her sisterly duty and Anakin is their father.  Three Jedi protectors and two babies seems like pretty good odds to me.”

“One for each baby and one to spare.  Obi-Wan and I can take the babies since Ahsoka can fight with both hands,” Anakin joked, “Where will you be in this scenario?  Making a speech in the Senate?”

“Laying down cover fire, dearest,” Padmé assured him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I missed last week's update. I had a surprise visit from family and that kept me busy. I hope this longer than usual update makes up for it.  
> In other news... I have started a blog on tumblr! I will post updates and outtakes for my fanfics and occasionally some fanart if I am brave enough. I also have my ask box open. You can check it out here: http://wolf-marauder.tumblr.com/ There is another account that is wolfmarauder. That one isn't me.  
> As always, I love to hear any feedback!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Domestic fluff, closely followed by domestic angst.

The next day brought a run in with Anakin and Padmé in the common area of the apartment.  They were each dressed in a set of Anakin’s sleep clothes and sipping cups of caf, or de-caf, in Padmé’s case.  Padmé was laying on the couch with her head pillowed on Anakin’s lap while he read through a data pad. Her hair was hanging loose and was sticking up at odd angles from sleep. Ahsoka found the mere idea of having that much hair fascinating, but extremely inconvenient.  They both looked up when she cleared her throat.

“You aren’t supposed to be up!” Anakin tutted, shooing her into a chair and propping her up with more cushions than necessary.  She looked to Padmé to complain about his overprotectiveness, but she just had that fond look again. Ahsoka huffed.  “Could you at least get me a cup of caf?”

“You are supposed to be taking it easy...” he met Ahsoka’s glare and turned toward the kitchenette. “Fine. Just don’t tell Obi-Wan.”

“Tell me what?” Obi-Wan entered the common area already dressed for the day, minus boots.

“Anakin is giving me caf.”

“Will you really just give your younglings whatever they ask you for?”

“No!” Anakin protested, just as Ahsoka and Padmé answered, “Yes!”

Then, belatedly, Ahsoka cried, “I am  _not_  a youngling!  I can have caf if I want.”  Her petulant tone probably didn’t do her argument any favors.

“I never said you were. Just that if Anakin is this indulgent with you, imagine how he will be with actual babies. They will be the most spoiled younglings imaginable!”

“And I’m sure Uncle Obi will be so strict with them,” Padmé teased. 

“Being strict isn’t the uncle’s job. I’m  _supposed_  to spoil them.”

“And I’m sure you will do it exactly by the book,” Anakin chuckled.  He handed Ahsoka a steaming cup of caf. 

She took a moment to enjoy the warmth in her palms and the scent.  She wrinkled her nose. Something was off.  She took a cautious sip and groaned. “You gave me de-caf?”

“I wouldn’t want to interfere with your healing trances. That would be irresponsible of me.”

Ahsoka huffed. “Fine,  _Dad_.”

Padmé had to sneak out after that so she could avoid running into any other Temple inhabitants going about their morning business. Obi-Wan offered to show her the routes the initiates in his age group used to sneak out and was surprised to find that Anakin had already shown them to her. Ahsoka and Anakin were surprised that  _he_  knew them, both having assumed their respective age groups were the first to discover the secret passages.  Obi-Wan protested that he wasn’t that much of a stick in the mud and that all the masters knew that initiates snuck out to explore Coruscant.  He left to escort her out, since it was plausible that a council member would have a morning meeting with a senator.

Anakin and Ahsoka were left to go over the day’s plans. When Padmé had left them, they had to leave the warm bubble of domesticity she had brought with her. Not being able to let her in on all their plans—for her safety and theirs—had allowed them to put off thinking about the incoming threat for one night. Now, it was back to the task at hand.

Rex, Kix, Cody, and Wolffe would be getting their chips removed today. From there, Anakin, one of the temple’s slicers, and Vokara Che would each get a chip to try to find a nonsurgical solution for their deactivation.  Ahsoka would go get her scans after her healing trance with Obi-Wan and Master Yoda. She should be in the Halls of Healing when Rex woke up. She hadn’t seen him since he left her with Obi-Wan. She was sorry that she wasn’t there to break the news about the chip, but she suspected he knew anyway.

“Don’t worry about Rex,” Anakin tried to reassure her, “You had a vision that he survived the surgery before, and I’m sure the medic that did the last one wasn’t nearly as good as Master Che.  He and the others  _volunteered_  to do this.”

“I know, Master,” she said quietly.  “Rex saved my life in my vision.  He fought his own brothers to keep me safe. He was the only friend from the past I had left at the end.”

Anakin stiffened. “Where are Padmé and the babies?”

Ahsoka cursed her stupid mouth. “The babies survive but I’m... I’m sorry.  Padmé didn’t make it.”  She could feel her Master’s fear and anger oozing across the bond thick and black like an oil slick.

“How?” he asked tightly, barely keeping himself in check. 

“I don’t know. I suspect some sort of Sith magic. She was perfectly healthy one minute and dead the next.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”  Ahsoka fought back a cringe. Anakin never shouted at her in anger. There was far too much Vader in him right now for comfort.

“I couldn’t tell you without telling you about the babies. I didn’t know if you knew about them yet and I wanted you and Padmé to have that happy moment! I just wanted one good thing to not be poisoned by politics and Sith Lords!” Ahsoka knew yelling didn’t help, but she couldn’t stop it. 

“I need to know so I can stop it happening!”

“I can stop it!  I know I can!  But the more _you_ do to stop it the closer it comes to happening.”

“That doesn’t make any sense!”  Anakin shouted.

“It is a trap laid by Palpatine.” It was close enough to the truth that Anakin didn’t feel it as a lie. 

“So, I just step aside and leave it to the  _will of the Force?_ ” he sneered, turning to stare out the window, towards the 500 Republica.

“No, you let Obi-Wan and me handle it. You are too close to think clearly.  We need you to trust us.  _Padmé_  needs you to trust us.”  Anakin didn’t turn around to face her, or even acknowledge what she said.  Ahsoka sighed.  “I haven’t told Obi-Wan about any of this. Be angry with me if you want, but don’t blame him.”

Anakin took some slow, deep breaths. She could feel his anger slowly dissipate into the Force. It didn’t disappear entirely, but it was down to more baseline level.  “I need to go meet Shaak Ti and the men at the Halls of Healing.”  He turned to leave, and her heart sank. He paused by the door to look back at her. “I do trust you, Snips.  You and Obi-Wan.  But you have to understand that letting her go is hard for me.  I can’t live without her.”

“I know,” Ahsoka said quietly, “I’m not asking you to let go, just to loosen your grip a little. Let others help you both.  I promise that I will find something to stop this.”  He nodded and left her without another word.

The sound of the door sliding shut was deafening in the quiet apartment. The warmth of the early morning had vanished. She could feel the first fissure between her and Anakin like an open wound.  She began to doubt whether she should have lied, or if that would only make the rift between them worse when he inevitably found out.  Should she have told him immediately when he came to her in the halls of healing?  She hoped that his bond with Obi-Wan, at least, was unaffected. If the rift between the two of them continue to widen... she could feel the panic rising in her throat and making it difficult to breathe.  Her skin was hot and cold all at once and her heart pounded in her chest like she had just run a sprint. 

She heard the pounding of feet and Obi-Wan ran through the door. He saw her gasping for breath and Anakin nowhere to be seen. He rubbed her back and coached her breathing until she had calmed down.

“I felt anger and fear.  What happened, little one?” he asked gently.

“I told Anakin a part of my vision. Not that he falls,” she interjected when it looked like Obi-Wan would interrupt her, “I didn’t tell you this part since it wouldn’t make sense without knowing about Anakin and Padmé. Padmé died in the vision. Sidious promised to save her, so Anakin turned to the Sith and she died anyway. He was so far gone that he attacked  _her_.  He asked what happened to Padmé and the babies so I had to tell him.  He might have felt a lie and that would have made it worse.  The babies live but Padmé doesn’t. He was so  _angry_. He was angry with  _me_.  What if this drives him away?  What if I’ve already ruined everything?”  Her voice was rising in pitch, urgent and fast. 

Obi-Wan shushed her. “It’s not your fault, Ahsoka. Not one but Anakin is responsible for how he handles his emotions. There was never going to be a good way to find that news out.”

“I felt Vader in him,” she cried, “All his anger was directed at me for just a moment, and it felt like Vader killing Fulcrum.  I was afraid. I was afraid of him and  _for_  him.”

“Ahsoka,” he said gently, “I think you are having a panic attack. I need you to take some slow, deep breaths.” He moved her hand to his own chest. She tried to focus on synchronizing her breathing to the rise and fall of his chest.

“I’m sorry,” she said when she calmed down again.

“There is nothing to be sorry about,” Obi-Wan assured her, his voice tightly controlled. “Now, I need you to tell me the truth, Ahsoka.  Did he hurt you?”

Ahsoka shook her head fervently.  Even having seen a future where she died by Vader’s hand, Anakin harming her was unimaginable.  “No… he was just yelling.  I could feel his anger and… and Darkness.”

Obi-Wan shushed her again, taking a few slow, deep breaths with her.  “Let me get you some water and then I’ll make you some tea.”

He handed her a cool glass, instructing her to take small sips and to keep her breathing steady.

“I think I will talk to Master Plo. I’m not saying that I will do all the mind healing, but it might be good to talk to someone... less involved.”

“I think that is a good idea. Do you want me to talk to Anakin?  I can feel that he is pretty stable now, but I can take him aside while you talk to Rex later today.”

Ahsoka nodded. “Just tell him that I’m sorry and that I’m worried about him.”

“We will talk more about how to protect Padmé and the babies later. I will dig around in the archive to see what I can find out about Sith curses.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah... Ahsoka's not the only one who should probably see a mind healer. Anakin, your attachment is showing. But yay for supportive Grandpa-master Obi-Wan!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bit of post-op levity from Rex, because who doesn't love him?
> 
> “Someone is a little off their head,” she chuckled.  
> “Me?” He looked surprised. “No! My head is better than ever! We make quite a complementary set, don’t we Commander? You hit ‘em high, I’ll hit ‘em low.”
> 
> In other news... Anakin continues to have Feelings.

That morning’s healing trance was not as productive as the day before.  Ahsoka could barely tell a difference when she came out of it besides a slightly lower pain level.  Her visit to the Halls of Healing confirmed her fears.  Master Che was not pleased with her scans, so Ahsoka was still on rest.  She was at least allowed to use crutches instead of being stuck in the hover chair.

“We’ve only been working on your healing for two days,” Obi-Wan reassured her.  “You need to keep perspective.  Just over a ten-day ago we didn’t know if you would even survive.  Now, with a few more healing trances and I’m sure you will be good as new in a couple of ten-days.”

“We don’t have time,” Ahsoka fretted, “If I had just been able to focus more...”

“ _Patience_. You had a stressful morning. We probably should have called off the session entirely and worked on meditation. It isn’t surprising you weren’t able to focus. I was having trouble myself.”

Ahsoka tried to run the numbers in her head. If Padmé didn’t deliver early—she had since found out than human twins tended to come early, especially in times of stress—they had six months until the fall of the Republic. Optimistically, it would be a month before she was in any kind of fighting shape. In that time, every clone trooper needed to be de-chipped and the younglings needed to be discretely evacuated.  The time would be gone before they knew it.

Obi-Wan patted her back reassuringly. “Let’s go check on the vod’e. Then I’ll talk to Anakin and see if I can calm him down.”

Rex was awake and sitting up in bed when she entered his room on the isolation ward. The ward, while rarely used, had strict visitation protocols to prevent the passage of pathogens that coincidentally made it ideal for use in the top-secret procedures this plan called for.  Her crutches clacked loudly in the quiet, so Rex probably knew she was coming from a kilometer away, even without her advanced hearing or use of the force.  He smiled drowsily at her when he saw her standing in to door.

“Commander,” he greeted, “You’ll have to excuse me for not standing up.” He winked at her. 

“At ease, soldier,” she teased. She hopped over to the chair beside him.

“I heard you were back and saving all our _shebs_ ,” he laughed, flicking her string Padawan beads after a few tries.

“Someone is a little off their head,” she chuckled.

“Me?” He looked surprised. “No! My head is better than ever!  We make quite a complementary set, don’t we Commander?  You hit ‘em high, I’ll hit ‘em low.”

She smiled at the informal, easy camaraderie that reminded her of her interactions with Rex in the future.  Maybe they would be able to get there one day without either Rex’s dedication to protocol being lowered by sedatives or a total collapse of all they’d ever known and loved.

“Don’t you start, too, Rexter,” she admonished, “Master Obi-Wan and Anakin are about to drive me up the wall. I won’t have you fussing from your own hospital bed.”

Rex waved her off. “I feel fine!” he protested. 

“I’m sure you do, Rexter.  I’m sure you do.”

Master Che’s assistant, Kida, giggled from the door. “I see we are still feeling very happy. The after effects of the sedation should wear off in a couple hours. Master Che was able to speed up the healing with Force Healing, so tomorrow it will be like it never happened.  Except for the missing chip, of course. Master Che is exhausted from four surgeries and four complete healing sessions in a row and is resting. I will be handling your and your brothers’ care until she returns.  Yours, too, Padawan Tano, should you need anything.”

“Thank you,” Ahsoka replied, “Was my Master here?”

“Knight Skywalker took one of the chips to the lab. I believe Master Kenobi joined him.”

Ahsoka nodded. “Good.”

“If you are both comfortable, I will continue making rounds. There are some ice chips in the conservator. Call me if anything changes.”  Rex and Ahsoka thanked her.

“May I?” Ahsoka asked, gesturing to her own head.

“Sure,” Rex encouraged. Ahsoka reached out with the force, into Rex’s mind, searching for anything _not-Rex_.  She didn’t invade his privacy by looking at memories, thoughts, or feelings, just felt out the general contours.  She could feel the after-image of something that was there. She assumed it was the chip, or the now-healed damage from its removal. It felt like an unnatural darkness.  It was as _not-Rex_ as possible.  She resurfaced.

“Everything good up there?” he asked. His playful tone belied the anxiety he felt. The need for reassurance from someone he trusted.

“I’m no healer, but it looks good to me.  I could feel that something was there but isn’t now.  I don’t feel any damage that needs fixing, so you really do just need to let the sedation wear off.”

“What about up here?” he asked, patting her head clumsily.

“You know me,” she shrugged.

“That’s why I asked.”

“Things are stressful. I saw some bad things. Really, really bad things. I know they weren’t real, but they felt real to me.”

“Generals Skywalker and Ti told us about the Chancellor’s plan and what the chips would make us do.  It makes me karking  _sick_  to think...  I was going to get mine out off the books to look into what Fives said but... would I have made it in time?”

Ahsoka could feel his distress.  Any universe where he turned against his _jetii_ was unimaginable to him. She took his hand in both of hers soothingly.  “You got it out in time. We were stationed together on Mandalore. You saved my life. We split up and it took fifteen years to find each other again, but we did. We helped lead a rebellion. We made a good team.”  She didn’t tell him that they had to fight their way off Mandalore against his brothers or that her name would join the countless others in his nightly remembrance. Those were burdens he shouldn’t have to face, now or ever. 

Rex seemed comforted by this. “Sounds like maybe we shouldn’t split up,” he said, “Whatever else happens.”

“If all our plans work out, we won’t have to,” she answered.

Ahsoka dozed off in the chair beside Rex’s bed. She didn’t want to admit it, but the healing trance and the first small amount of walking she had done in almost three ten-days had taken its toll. She was exhausted and Rex’s presence in the Force was familiar and reassuring, even if he was only slightly more fit for combat than she was. His soft, even breaths told her he had fallen asleep, too.

Falling asleep sitting up hadn’t done her back any favors, though. A dull ache radiated from the site of her damaged disc and newly-healed vertebra and radiated to her legs.  She stretched out with a groan, wondering how long she had been asleep. Belatedly, she realized that Rex wasn’t the only Force presence she could feel. There was another one approaching down the corridor, just as familiar as Rex’s. Anakin.  She reached out to him cautiously and felt something like sadness, yet hope.  He didn’t seem angry anymore, which reassured her.  She still couldn’t quite manage to tamp down the anxiety she felt when she saw her master at the door. He must have sensed it, because he stopped at the door with a wince.

“Ahsoka,” he breathed, “Can we talk? Alone?”

She looked over at Rex, who was still sleeping deeply. She was hesitant to wake him, but didn’t want him to wake up alone without explanation. She nudged his shoulder, and waited for him to blink up at her.

“Commander?” he mumbled.

“I just wanted to tell you that I’m going with Master Skywalker. You know how to find me if you need anything.  You can go back to sleep.”

“Roger.” His voice was heavy with sleep, and Ahsoka wondered if he would even remember talking to her. She had tried her best though.

Ahsoka attached the crutches at her forearms as Master Che had instructed and used the handholds to push herself up.  She felt gangly and awkward as a newborn bantha, but it was an improvement over being pushed around.  She focused on using good body mechanics while she crossed the room to Anakin, rather than his presence.  She passed him to exit into the corridor, looking back only to make sure he was following.

Anakin fell into step beside her, shortening his stride to match her slower pace. They walked in silence; the only sounds were the clack of her crutches and the light thud of Anakin’s satchel against his leg. She knew what was in it already. She could feel them.  Anakin keyed in the entry code for their door and beckoned her in.  She looked around the empty common space of the apartment.

“Where is Master Obi-Wan?” she asked. 

Something like a wince flitted across Anakin’s face. “I believe he was checking in on Cody.  Do you want me to...?”

“No,” Ahsoka protested, “I was just wondering.”  She couldn’t keep using Obi-Wan as a security blanket, especially not when it came to Anakin.

“Why don’t you get comfortable? I’ll make us some caf—the real stuff this time.”

Comfortable, in practice, meant least uncomfortable. Ahsoka laid on her back on the sofa with her left leg propped up and her right bent to allow the small of her back to straighten out.  She carefully propped herself up with some pillows.  By the time she had arranged herself so that her pain level was reduced to a dull ache, Anakin had returned with two cups of caf in one hand and a couple of pills in the other.  His bag was still slung over his shoulder.  He sat on the low table so that he could face her, but the both seemed more absorbed in their cups now.

“I have somethings that belong to you,” Anakin said abruptly, pulling a wooden case from his bag.

“I know,” Ahsoka answered, her eyes fixed on the box, “I can hear them singing.”

“Of course,” Anakin chuckled awkwardly, “I guess it isn’t too much of a surprise.” He opened the box to reveal her two lightsabers, nestled into a soft felt lining.  He passed it to her and she ran her fingers over the carvings in wood.  The familiar hum of the Kyber crystals in her sabers was soothing.

“Did you make this?” she asked indicating the box that was clearly designed for her lightsabers.

“I did the carvings and case lining,” he said, “The box I saw in a market. The seller said it was made by an artisan from Kiros.”

“It is beautiful, Anakin.”

“I had planned on it being a Life Day present… before everything happened.”

“I’m glad you held on to it. And to these,” she said, indicating her lightsabers.

“Whether or not you came back, I was going to get them to you one way or another.”

When she ignited the blades, part of her was surprised to see green rather than pure white.

“This doesn’t mean you can jump back into saber practice before Master Che says it is alright.  I thought having the crystals nearby may help you focus your meditations, though.  I’m sure the council would have returned them to you when you were reinstated, but they seem to have been... misplaced... after you left.”

“Misplaced... inside their new case?”

“It was an easy mistake to make. And if I happened to gift the box to you without looking inside first...” Anakin shrugged.  Ahsoka couldn’t help but crack a smile. She switched off the blades, but kept the hilts held loosely in her hand, enjoying the proximity of the crystals. 

She focused on their steady hum as Anakin spoke again, more somberly than before.  “I didn’t come find you just to give you your sabers back.”  He sighed deeply. Ahsoka gave him time. “Obi-Wan talked to me earlier and told me I should apologize to you, and he was right.”

“It’s alright, Master.”

“No, it isn’t. I should have controlled my anger better. I should have listened to you instead of focusing on my own fear. I never want you to be afraid of me, Ahsoka.  Obi-Wan said that you couldn’t even fall into a full healing trance because you were so upset.”

“It’s not your fault,” she lied, “This whole situation is stressful.”

Anakin looked at her skeptically. “Even if that is true, I should be supporting you, not giving you more to worry about.”

Ahsoka wanted to laugh at that. Worrying about Anakin had been her full-time job for years now.  “I forgive you,” she said instead.  Forgetting was an entirely different matter. 

He put a hand on her shoulder, looking up at her with fierce determination.  It was a look that she associated with battle strategy meetings. “I promise I will try to do better,” he said firmly, “I understand why you can’t tell me everything, even if I don’t like it. I will try to trust that if there is something I need to know, you will tell me.”

“We  _will_  find a way to save Padmé. Master Obi-Wan is looking in the archives that only the council masters have access to.  If that doesn’t work, I saw somewhere that may give us the answers we need.”

“Where is that?”

“The Sith Temple where I died,” she said grimly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I missed my usual update time again. Hopefully I will manage to get the next chapter up Sunday this week.  
> I just realized that this story has gotten 122 kudos! Thank you to everyone who has either reviewed or left kudos on this work. It really does mean a lot to me!


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Always in motion, the future is,” the gravelly voice of Yoda intoned. The old master hobbled across the garden towards her, leaning on his gimer stick. He sat beside her, perched on a root.
> 
> “Master, if I cannot see what we’ve changed, how do I know we changed the right thing?”
> 
> Anakin begins his assignment, and Ahsoka receives hers.

Anakin, predictably, did not like her back-up plan. “No. Absolutely not.  Sith Temples are dangerous.”

“Believe me, I know,” she argued, “I’ve seen one.  It was hard to miss the dead bodies.”

“What could be there that would save Padmé?”

Ahsoka tried to tamp down her anxiety before Anakin could notice. “Nothing there will save her,” she said firmly, “but we could possibly find some information on what killed her.”

“I’m sure Obi-Wan will find something in the archives,” Anakin insisted, “The Jedi fought the Sith before and won. They must have collected information along the way... if not, we will go to this Sith temple, find what we need, and save Padmé.”

“No!” Ahsoka cried, “You can’t go, and I can’t tell you why.  Just know that whatever happens... the Sith can’t save Padmé.”

Anakin’s fists clenched, but he drew a deep breath and released it slowly. “I’m trying, Ahsoka... I’m trying to trust you and Obi-Wan with this. I trust you both with my life. I’m trying to trust you with her’s. With _theirs_.”

“I know. I know it is hard.  You will understand someday. When we are past this, I will tell you everything. Until then...”

“Trust.”

“You need to focus on the chip. That is your mission. If the order goes down while the chips are still active, every Force-sensitive in the galaxy is in danger. Even younglings.”

“The twins,” he breathed. Ahsoka could feel his fear through the bond.  She felt underhanded bringing them up to distract him from Padmé. 

“They made it through the purge in my vision,” she reminded him to assuage his fear, “but others were not as lucky. I know how your younglings were hidden before.  If necessary, I can do it again.”  She paused. “Think of it as a battle plan. We are dividing up to outflank him from all sides. The plan only works if we both take care of our part.  It is the only way to protect Padmé, the twins, the vod’e, the Jedi... everyone.”

Anakin nodded.  “I guess I should go back to the lab, then.  Those chips aren’t going to destroy themselves.  Is there anywhere you need to go?”

“I don’t think I have anything on the schedule. Master Che said I should spend some time getting used to the crutches.  I think I may go to the gardens. Being around growing things is... comforting. I may try to meditate a bit.”

“I’ll walk with you,” he offered, “Then I’ll swing by to see how Rex is.”

Ahsoka giggled. “You might want to bring a holocorder.  The sedation has probably worn off though, so you may have missed your chance.”

“I’m sure Rex will be glad about that.”

 

Anakin fussed about leaving her alone in the garden, but agreed that he should get to work. Ahsoka was less worried about him now that he had a task to focus his attention on. Anakin was always better, more stable, when he was in motion. They had that in common.

The garden was bathed in golden sunlight that shone off the pale walls of the temple.  The birds sang with shrill warbles to each other from the trees. Distantly, she could hear the laughter of a youngling clan having their free play time.  Slowly, so as to not trip on a root or slip on gravel, she made her way to the shade of a large, ancient tree.  She remembered climbing it when she was a youngling herself.  Now, she settled herself between to roots, with her back against the trunk.  Ahsoka closed her eyes, pressing her palms to the soft grass to ground herself.  She felt out into the Force and felt the life surrounding her. The tree’s branches reached toward the sky while its roots reached deep into the soil below. Many generations of Jedi before her had found quiet in its shade. Two birds were tending their nestlings above. Flowers and grasses carpeted the ground. The vibrant happiness of the younglings carried to her even more clearly than their laughter, as though reverberating through the soil beneath her palms.

Having taken in her surroundings, she turned her focus to the future. She opened her mind to it, calling it to her, but it was like trying to clench water in her fists. She could catch brief flashes, but as soon as she could see a form beginning to develop, it was gone.  There were feelings... joy, fear, happiness, sorrow... the conflicting emotions hit her in turn. 

A rustle in the canopy of leaves above and a soft cooing distracted her. She barely caught a flash of white and green feathers.

“Morai?” she whispered, her heart beating faster, “Morai?  Am I on the right path? Please!  Show me!”  Nothing happened, and Ahsoka felt a bit stupid calling out to a tree and an apparition that probably wasn’t there.   After all, Morai didn’t find her until after she joined the Rebellion. She was only tricking herself into seeing what she wanted.  Sighing, she slumped against the tree. She rubbed her temples in an attempt to dispel the oncoming headache.  She focused back towards the tree that surrounded her on three sides. She could feel a certainty that one day in the future, more generations of younglings would play in its branches.  She couldn’t tell how distant that future would be, but she knew that it could happen.  This was an improvement over the future she saw before, where the temple gardens burned. Of course, the impression of the future could also mean that some little ones would be playing here tomorrow or next week.

“Always in motion, the future is,” the gravelly voice of Yoda intoned. The old master hobbled across the garden towards her, leaning on his gimer stick.  He sat beside her, perched on a root.

“Master, if I cannot see what we’ve changed, how do I know we changed the right thing?”

“Blinded, we have all been. Knowing even one possible future, important it is.”

“But master...”

Yoda held up his small hand to silence her. “Attempt to focus your vision, we may.  Force it to come, we cannot.  Make use of what we have already been given, we must.”

“What do I need to do?”

“Find a refuge for the younglings, we must. An idea of where to hide them, have you, hmm?”

“There were a few planets or moons that I scouted that did not attract the Empire’s notice.”

“Confer with the council, you will,” he instructed, “Many questions, we must ask you.  When set on a path, we are, your vision, cleared it may be.”  He nodded sagely and hopped down from the root. She watched his wizened little form return to the temple.  She felt a flutter of anxiety in her stomach at the prospect of speaking before the council again.

“Master Yoda,” she called after his retreating form, “Could you tell Master Plo that I would like to see him if he has the time.”

Yoda looked at her knowingly. “Send him to you, I will. Yes... a great help to you he will be. In the garden much longer, will you stay?”

“I will wait for him here. I was going to try to meditate some more.”

“In the present, remain for now, Young Tano. Trouble not your mind while healing, it is.  Especially when futile, the exercise is.”

“I will try, master,” Ahsoka promised. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter, another struggle with Yoda’s syntax :) I wrote this chapter on my phone, so apologies for any funky formatting issues. On the bright side, I was almost on time for my Sunday goal.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahsoka and Plo have a chat. Because mental health is important.  
> Obi-Wan and Ahsoka put operation "save everyone" in to motion.

Ahsoka was surprised how comforting it was to talk to Master Plo.  The act of releasing her anxieties and voicing them in the open was cathartic.  The first thing that he did was reassure her that whatever she said in their sessions would not leave them.  The council and Anakin would not know anything she didn’t explicitly ask him to pass on.  That security gave her space to talk about the time she spent trying to ignore the Force’s call, as well as some of the more morally dubious things she either did or signed off on as Fulcrum.  She was able to talk about the horrors the Empire committed, and how difficult it was not to give in to anger and fear.  Plo listened to every admission without judgement, only bowing his head solemnly when she described something particularly painful. Those times, she could feel her Finder’s comforting presence surrounding her as it had on Shili.  When she felt that she could speak no more, he gently encouraged her forward.

For all of Plo’s patient understanding, there was still one worry Ahsoka could not give voice to, and it was a significant one. Anakin.

“We have not spoken of your Master, little one,” Plo observed, “Even in a vision, losing one so close to you is traumatic.”  There was no suspicion in his tone or that she could feel from him.  There was only concern. 

Ahsoka chewed her lip, trying to find the most delicate way to step around the issue.  “Seeing what happened to my master... to Anakin... it was one of the most difficult parts. I’m not sure I am ready to talk about it in detail.”

Plo clicked reassuringly. “We do not have to talk about it now.  It is, however, important both as a Jedi and a mortal being to remember that loss is a part of life. It is not in our power to stop it. We can appreciate and protect who and what we love, but we must also be prepared to let them go.  Dwelling on what is lost may blind you to what you still have and what might yet be saved. Clearly, in that alternate future you were more resilient that most could ever be, to not only remain on the light side after losing so much but to continue protecting those who couldn’t protect themselves.”

“I did not act out of compassion, at least at first. I wanted to take down the Empire for what it had taken from me and for so many others. I wanted to watch it burn.”

“Was a desire for revenge enough to sustain you?”

“No.  When Fulcrum began with the rebellion, it became clear that fear and anger could not sustain her or it pretty quickly.”

Plo tilted his head in question. “I notice that you call your future self ‘Fulcrum’ when talking about actions, especially those serving a greater purpose, rather than using the first person.  But you say ‘I’ or ‘me’ when you talk about what you feel are shortcomings or failures, especially ones with emotional investment.  Is there a reason for that?”

Ahsoka shrugged, not meeting Plo’s inquisitive gaze.  “Maybe you should meditate on that, and we can talk more about it next time?  I don’t want to overwhelm you in our first session. You can, of course, find me whenever you need me, as a mind healer or a friend.”  

Ahsoka thanked him, and went to find Obi-Wan to see what was on her schedule for the rest of the day. It would probably be a while before Anakin emerged from the lab. She lowered the mental shield that she had firmly erected between them while talking to Master Plo a fraction... what had become her normal level of shielding she maintained to keep any visions from spilling over to Anakin.  She could sense him on the other side of their bond. The bond felt stronger now that the air between them was cleared.  She could feel that he was calmer, almost meditative as he worked on parsing out the fine mechanical details in the chip.  She, too, felt lighter after her talk with Master Plo.  Unsurprisingly, their improved individual mental states helped each other feel more secure and balanced. 

She limped her way through halls of the Temple. It was the first time that she had walked among her fellow Jedi without either her Master or Grand-master at her side.  The halls weren’t busy—many Jedi had been called to the front—but she could feel the stares of those she passed on her back.  She wondered what they thought of her.  Did any of them still suspect her of the bombing?  Did they resent her sudden return after leaving the Order?  She cautiously examined the Force around a passing knight and sensed curiosity or even concern, rather than malice.  Turning her reflection inward, she could feel how thoroughly she had walled herself off.  Her jaw was even clenched.  She didn’t move to talk to any of them, and they returned the favor.  She could barely look at them.  _If I fail,_ she thought, _they will all die_.  She took a deep breath, remembering Master Plo’s words. With her exhale, she tried to release her anxieties to the Force.  She opened herself up just a fraction, so that she was broadcasting something other than _don’t talk to me_.

She went to the library, knowing that Obi-Wan was planning on going there.  Master Nu was absorbed in her work when she arrived, and a few other Jedi roamed the stacks.  Master Jocasta Nu in the Jedi Archives.  The Force sang with the _rightness_ of it.  The sound of her crutches on the tile caught Master Nu’s attention.  The harsh lines of her face softened ever so slightly when she saw Ahsoka.  “Padawan Tano,” she greeted crisply.

“Good afternoon, Master Nu,” Ahsoka replied with a respectful bow of her head, which was the best she could manage with the crutches, “Is Master Kenobi here?”

Master Nu rose from her desk fluidly.  “I believe he is in the holocron vault.  I will tell him you are here.  Find yourself a seat at one of the tables to get off your feet.”  Ahsoka nodded.  Once her back was turned, Ahsoka cracked a smile.  For the tough-as-kyber librarian, that round-about expression of concern for Ahsoka’s comfort was the equivalent of a comforting hug from Obi-Wan or Anakin.  She found a seat at a corner table and kept working on opening herself up and venting out her worries.  Unfortunately, sparring had always been more effective than stillness for her and that option was off the table.  The muffled noise of the library familiar.  The very old texts that were bound into books or written on scrolls rather than on data pad or holocron gave this corner a less coolly sterile feeling.  It had been her favorite place to study as a youngling.

Obi-Wan looked stressed when he and Jocasta found her, which wasn’t particularly unusual.  He acknowledged her with a sharp nod and a tight smile.  “Good afternoon, Ahsoka.  Let’s go for a walk.”  His sabbac face was cracking, which _was_ unusual for him.  Her fumbling with her crutches further impaired his smooth exit.  He led her to an unused classroom at the end of a quiet hallway.

“If Jocasta finds out that I took this from the archive—to show a Padawan, no less—it’s both of our heads.”  Obi-Wan sat the Sith holocron on the table between them. The darkness it emitted was nauseating and made her feel cold and clammy all over. “I believe this has the information on the Sith curse that we need to save Padmé. There is just one problem...”

“We can’t open it,” Ahsoka finished for him. 

“Not without channeling the Darkside.”

“If we tell Anakin he  _will_  fall if he thinks that will allow him to open it.”

“I know,” Obi-Wan said with a heavy sigh.

“Then you know who we need to find.”  

Obi-Wan’s eyes shot to her.  “No,” he said firmly, “We can’t trust her.”

“She saved my life,” Ahsoka reminded him, “And yours.”

“And how many has she killed?” he prodded.

Obi-Wan was clearly going to make this difficult.  “Lately... none that I know of.  We need to get the holocron open if we are going to save Anakin.  We are doing this because we believe he _can_ be saved.  I’m not saying that Ventress hasn’t done horrible things, because she has, but what she has done is _nothing_ compared to what I’ve seen Anakin do if he falls.  I can’t believe that anyone is beyond redemption if they choose it if I let myself believe I can save him.”

“If she  _has_  changed, then asking her to channel this much darkness may cause her to Fall back to that Dark path.”

“Then we pick her up again.  We are out of choices and running out of time.  Either one of us channels darkness to open this thing up or we find Ventress.”

“I suppose we don’t have any other option,” Obi-Wan acquiesced.

“Maybe we will get lucky and she will know what to do without having to open the holocron,” Ahsoka suggested hopefully.

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes.  “You have an odd definition of luck, little one.”

Ahsoka shrugged. “These days, I take what I can get.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I will hopefully have the next chapter up Sunday. Please review and let me know what you think!
> 
> Follow me on tumblr at https://www.tumblr.com/blog/wolf-marauder


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahsoka and Obi-Wan meet up with a possible ally in the Coruscanti underworld and discover shocking information.

The lower levels of Coruscant had become somewhat familiar to Ahsoka in the months she was away from the Order. It wouldn’t necessarily help to find Ventress in the teeming crowd of sentient beings, but she had a solution for that.

“You have a comlink for her?” Obi-Wan asked in disapproval.

Ahsoka shrugged.  “It doesn’t hurt to keep track of a possible ally, even a temporary one. It’s not like we became best friends.  She was just...” Ahsoka trailed off. Saying that Ventress was also an Apprentice that was cast off by her Masters would only make Obi-Wan feel more guilty. That was neither fair, nor productive.

“She was there when I needed help. We parted on good terms. That doesn’t necessarily mean she will answer when I call her.”

“We can only hope...” Obi-Wan sighed.  He kept a lookout while Ahsoka sent a message to Ventress’ secure comm.

“Come on.  We will want to get to the meeting place first. Set the field up on our terms.”

“What happened to forgiveness and redemption?” he asked, hiding his wry smile behind his hand. 

“It’s not the same as foolishness and forgetting.”

“Let no one say you aren’t canny, little one,” he laughed.

They had left the Temple without telling anyone where they were going, besides a brief note for Anakin not to wait up.  They were dressed in the shabbiest civvies they could find in a hurry, with hooded cloaks that obscured most of their faces. They blended in here, among the down-and-out and criminals.  Ahsoka had negotiated Obi-Wan down to letting her use one crutch instead of two, insisting that she needed at least one hand free to fire a blaster.  She had to say, the resulting off-balance lumbering added to the effect.

Ahsoka led them to a dive bar tucked into a dim, trash-strewn alley.  Obi-Wan looked around in disdain, but did not say anything.  Ahsoka’s nose wrinkled at the smell.  Only a small, garishly painted sign indicated the place they were looking for. The inside was no better appointed than the outside.  The place reeked of stale smoke and liquor and her feet stuck on the floor.  “A fine establishment,” Obi-Wan observed dryly, “I do hope we don’t need a reservation.”

Their hoods pulled low over their faces did not stand out. The bar seemed full of people of various species looking to not be noticed.  Ahsoka tilted her head to indicate a shadowy corner booth.  There was a small human man sitting there, his glass down to dregs.  His eyes were unfocused. 

“You’re finishing up here, aren’t you?” Ahsoka said evenly, though a threatening growl rumbled from the back of her throat. She moved her cloak to the side, giving him a view of the blaster at her hip.  Her lightsabers were safely tucked out of view behind her back. The man went pale, and scrambled from the booth to settle his tab.

“What was that for?” Obi-Wan asked lowly.

“No one will mess with us now, and they won’t guess who we work for.  Plus, this one has the best view of the bar and the door.”

She waved to the bartender, who brought over two glasses of whatever poison this place specialized in.  She tossed him some credits.  “We’ll be left alone now,” she demanded, putting a hard edge into her voice.  The bartender nodded.  He was no doubt used to minding his own business and turning a blind eye to shady dealings.  She could feel Obi-Wan’s questioning glance.  “My time away was quite the education,” she defended.

Not long after they arrived, they felt another force-sensitive approaching.  There wasn’t the sickly coldness of a Sith, but there wasn’t the warm glow of a Jedi either.  “Hello, Tano,” Ventress said silkily, “You’ve fallen back in with a rough crowd, I see.”

“I went home. I was needed,” Ahsoka replied, voice sharp.

Ventress glanced meaningfully at the crutch beside her. “I can see that is working out well for you.”  She turned her attention to Obi-Wan. “Kenobi,” she purred, “Sentence any children to death lately?”

She felt more than heard Obi-Wan’s sharp intake of breath. “ _Ventress_ ,” she hissed, “Enough.”

“It is quite alright, Ahsoka. I can admit where I—and the council—were wrong,” Obi-Wan said evenly, though Ahsoka could feel his pain through their bond. Ventress’ barb and drawn blood.

Ventress looked smug about this. “How open minded of you.”

“You’re one to take the moral high ground,” Obi-Wan sniped.

Ventress laughed. “Oh darling, I never pretended to.  Now, I suspect you didn’t come all this way for a social call.”

Ahsoka needed to get this meeting back on track before it devolved further.  “We need to ask you some questions... and maybe have you do us a favor.”

Ventress rolled her eyes. “I don’t do favors.  It’s bad for business.  So, tell me what’s in it for me.”

“It would do your image some favors to help a member of the Jedi Council,” Ahsoka reminded her sweetly, “I promised to intercede on your behalf. This is me interceding.”

Obi-Wan shot her a look that said _we will talk about_ that _later_ , but turned his attention back to Ventress. He was clearly loathe to let the former assassin out of his sight.  “I assure you we are not asking anything too strenuous. We are just looking for information in your area of... expertise.”

Ventress studied them carefully, her lips pressed in a thin line. “Fine,” she said sharply, “What do you want to know?”

“We need you to open a Sith holocron,” Ahsoka said, ignoring Obi-Wan’s apprehension.

“And what do two fine, upstanding Jedi need with a Sith holocron?” Ventress asked suspiciously.

“You don’t need to know,” Ahsoka insisted cagily, “In fact, it is safer that you don’t.”

“I’m not doing it then,” Ventress said flatly, “I know a trap when I see one. If you _really_ want it opened, you can darken your own soul for it.”

Ahsoka growled in frustration, but Obi-Wan’s interest was piqued. “A trap?” he asked. 

Ventress huffed. “Don’t play stupid, Kenobi, it doesn’t suit you.”

“I’m flattered, darling, but you are going to have to clarify.”

“This is a test. A test I can’t pass. If I can’t or won’t help you open it, you won’t help me. If I _can_ open it, then I prove my own darkness. I prove that I am _unworthy_ of a Jedi’s help.  Either way you can wash your hands of me.”

Obi-Wan seemed stunned by her assessment. “I’m afraid we aren’t that devious. We simply need information about a Sith power.”

“Then you better hope I know it already, because I’m not opening it.”

Ahsoka glared at her, but Ventress merely lounged in her seat. Obi-Wan nudged her. “Little one,” he admonished, for her montrals only. 

“Fine,” Ahsoka bit out, “Do you know how or why a Sith could steal the life from someone without leaving a physical trace?”

Ventress raised her eyebrow, but did seem to be considering the question. “I don’t know how it is done,” she said finally, as though admitting her lack of knowledge was painful, “But I have heard of something like that. Both the Sith and the Night Sisters have ways of stealing the life-force from one being and passing it to another to stave off death.”

Ahsoka’s blood ran cold.  Her own high trill of distress rang in her montrals, out of range of the others’ hearing.  “Kriff,” she gasped, “The karking barve...”

“Ahsoka?” Obi-Wan asked worriedly.  Even Ventress seemed taken aback by her reaction. 

Ahsoka shook her head. “Not here.”  She glanced at Ventress, who was now leaning forward in interest. “Thank you. We have to go.  We’ll be in touch.”

“Tano,” she threatened.

“I won’t go back on my word,” she said sharply, “We’re leaving.”  She stormed out of the bar, barely registering Obi-Wan placating Ventress and running after her.

He grabbed her arm, but she shook him off. “Ahsoka,” he begged, “You need to calm down.  At least take your crutch.”

She hadn’t noticed that she left it behind, but now that she slowed down, her leg ached. She took it from Obi-Wan and continued limping toward their speeder.

“Ahsoka!  You are letting your anger get the best of you.  Calm. Down.”

“It’s bad enough what he plans to do to the vod’e, to _us_...” She let out a string of profanity that would make a seasoned trooper blush. Each syllable was punctuated by her crutch hitting the ground to propel her forward.  She wasn’t quite sure why this new knowledge was so hard to take.  Perhaps because it was so personal, crafted solely to cause suffering.  When she had exhausted her rather extensive and multilingual vocabulary, she took a deep breath to center herself. She filled her lungs with the stale under-city air, and released her anger with her exhaled breath.  Obi-Wan was still looking at her like she was a thermo detonator about to go off.

“I’m... better,” she assured him, “I’ll tell you more when we are back in the Temple. Somewhere private.”

Obi-Wan nodded, and she could feel him reaching out to her, sending her reassurance and calm.  They didn’t speak on the way back in the speeder, or while walking to a meditation room.

“So what did all that mean?” Obi-Wan asked once the door was closed and the room was shielded.

“The day Anakin fell,” Ahsoka began, trying to phrase the truth carefully, “He fought the Jedi.  The duel left him mortally wounded. He should have died.  The Jedi certainly thought he would when he left him there, burning.”  Horror was dawning on Obi-Wan’s face. “Anakin didn’t die,” she continued, “But Padmé did.  She was in perfect health. She just... faded away.  Like all her life-force was drained away.”

“To keep Anakin alive,” Obi-Wan finished. He had gone white to the lips. Ahsoka could feel anger and revulsion building in him, though he quickly reigned himself in.

“I should have thought of it before. The dark side can’t heal, but ordinary medicine could not have kept Vader alive long enough to get to a life support suit. The emperor even had the kriffing thing _ready_.”  She shook her head at how thoroughly there were being played.

“He fell to save her,” Obi-Wan remembered solemnly.  His tone was disbelief.

“He failed. His fall cost Padmé her life.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am posting from my phone again, so apologies for any formatting weirdness. 
> 
> I am inserting my own head cannon here. I refuse to believe that Padmé Amidala survived multiple assassination attempts, a siege on her home planet, infection with a deadly virus, and being captured multiple times to be taken out by sadness. The med droid would have noticed if there was something physically wrong with her (and a crushed trachea or labor complications would have been a biggie), but it said there was nothing. Even the way that sequence is cut going back and forth between Padmé taking her last breath and Vader taking his first in the suit fits. I’m interested in hearing what people think of this!


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Jedi attempt to protect themselves from the current threat while securing the future in the face of possible tragedy.

There was, as the saying went, no rest for the weary.  Ahsoka and Obi-Wan had returned to their rooms very late the night before.  They had needed to meditate and work through their own anger and fear before returning to Anakin, even if he was already asleep.  Even though she felt much calmer afterward, Ahsoka slept fitfully. The first sounds of the city planet waking up were filtering through her window before she finally fell asleep.

She was ashamed of her relief that Anakin had already gone to work in the lab when she woke up.  Instead, Obi-Wan was in the kitchen area making tea, looking as worn out as she felt.  “Morning,” he grunted. Ahsoka wasn’t sure if it was in greeting or commiseration.  She couldn’t hold back her yawn.  “Tea?” he offered, and pushed a cup in her direction before she could answer.

“Thanks,” she muttered through another yawn and took a sip. It was very sweet and very, very strong.  She fought back a wince.  She was surprised the spoon wasn’t standing up in the mug.  If Obi-Wan wanted more caffeine he should just make caf.  Or pour in stims.

“Do we have a schedule for today?” she asked.

Obi-Wan nodded. “We will do a healing session this morning. Vokara will assist now that she has been read into the plans. She hasn’t gotten all her strength back from yesterday, but she will be able to guide us.  Then the council has questions for you, so we will meet with them.”

“Yes,” she grimaced, “Master Yoda warned me about that yesterday.”

Obi-Wan patted the back of her hand.  “It has been decided that it would be unwise for a whole group as large as the council to know our plans in full. Only a small splinter group will decide our course and know the full reasoning behind them. The rest of the council will take the committee’s direction. If the worst should happen, the council will be the first targets for those looking for information.  Having a large portion of the council know very little may help hide those that do.”

“They are setting themselves up as decoys,” she observed. Fulcrum would appreciate the tactic.  Ahsoka wasn’t sure how she felt.

“They know what it means, and it is a sacrifice they make willingly,” he said grimly.

Ahsoka hummed in response and Obi-Wan turned away to make breakfast for the two of them.  “Did you speak to Anakin this morning?” she asked when she could no longer see his face.

Obi-Wan nodded. “He asked how our mission last night went.  I told him we were making progress.  I know he wanted me to say more, but he didn’t press.”

“That’s encouraging, I guess,” Ahsoka sighed, “I know he hates being out of the loop.”

“He is trying,” Obi-Wan agreed, turning back with two plates, “I just hope that we have something more solid to give him soon.  ‘Making progress’ won’t reassure him for long.”

Ahsoka prodded the eggs Obi-Wan set in front of her with her fork.  “Eat up,” he instructed, digging in to his own portion, “We need to meet Vokara soon.”

* * *

   


“Good morning, Padawan Tano, Obi-Wan,” Master Che greeted them when they arrived at the Halls of Healing. “You seem to be doing well with the crutches.  Let’s see if we can get you back on your own two feet, shall we?”

“Right to business, as usual,” Obi-Wan chuckled.

“I do not see any reason to delay,” she said briskly, though a smile played at the corners of her lips, “We both have work to do and I am sure Padawan Tano is eager to get started.”

“Yes, please,” Ahsoka answered eagerly.  She settled herself on the bio-bed and Master Che and Obi-Wan took up position on either side.  Ahsoka closed her eyes and focused inward.  After a few days of practice, falling into a trance was easier.  She could feel Master Che sending tendrils of healing energy through her, feeling for what was injured.  Ahsoka accepted them and directed them where she was hurting.  A warm, tingling sensation settled over her left side, centered on her ribs, back, leg, and knee.

“Obi-Wan, take my hand and Ahsoka’s,” the healer instructed.  Her voice was softer now, seemingly floating on the Force itself.  His hand found Ahsoka’s, and more energy followed Vokara’s threads in the Force to knit together bone and muscle.  The feeling of cells returning to their usual arrangement wasn’t painful exactly, but it wasn’t comfortable either.  The changes during the previous two trances were more incremental, and therefore less noticeable.  Ahsoka hoped that the strange squeezing feeling meant it was working.

The bright threads receded, returning to Master Che, and Ahsoka felt a gentle prodding at the edges of her mind calling her back to awareness.  “Don’t sit up too fast,” Master Che warned her, “That goes for you, too, Obi-Wan.”  She pressed bottles of juice into her and Obi-Wan’s hands.  “Here, this will help get you some energy back.”  Ahsoka took a sip.  It was almost cloyingly sweet.

Thankfully Ahsoka hadn’t needed to use as much energy as she had before now that she had an accomplished healer guiding her and doing most of the work.  She and Obi-Wan had to be at the council meeting in less than a standard hour.  Master Che made them both wait until their dizziness had subsided and they had drunk all of their juice.  “We’ll do your scans later, Padawan Tano.  Until then, make sure you keep using your crutches,” she reminded Ahsoka sternly before sending her and Obi-Wan on their way.

“Thank you, Master Che,” Ahsoka said earnestly.  “And thank you, Master Obi-Wan.”

“It’s no trouble at all, Ahsoka,” he assured her, but she could see how tired he was after the healing session on top of the tiredness from a late night.  He seemed to see that she didn’t believe him.  He patted her shoulder with a tight smile that didn’t meet his eyes.  “We should be on our way.”

Obi-Wan filled her in on the plan for the meeting in the relative privacy of the turbolift.  There would only be four masters present, including Obi-Wan.  In two other rooms, two more decoy councils were meeting.  The group assignments were random, with the exception of Obi-Wan’s, and no one knew anyone else’s assignments.  Arrival times had even been staggered to prevent anyone knowing who was in what group outside their own.  Their group hadn’t known that they would be on the real committee until she and Obi-Wan arrived. Shaak Ti, Mace Windu, and Jocasta Nu sat around a data table.  They looked up from the documents in front of them with heaviness in their eyes.  Ahsoka could almost see the burden of decision fall on their shoulders.  Master Windu nodded grimly and gestured to two empty seats.

Ahsoka took her seat and looked up to see all the masters looking at her expectantly.  Her stomach rolled in on itself.  “Would you mind walking us through what you saw in more detail, _rui’iell_?” Master Ti prodded gently.

Ahsoka gave a weak smile to her Hunt Mother and did as she was asked, carefully skirting around Anakin and Padmé. When it came down to it, Sidious didn’t  _need_  Anakin for his plan to work.  Likewise, they could out maneuver him even if Anakin fell. At least, that is how Ahsoka justified keeping that information to herself.

Everyone looked somber when she finished.  She waited for the words of doubt, the disbelief.  She wouldn’t blame them.  She knew that what she was saying was beyond belief.  The accusations didn’t come.  There was only silence and heads bowed in thought.

“The roots of corruption run deep,” Shaak sighed at last, her lekku twitching in agitation but otherwise outwardly calm, “Four chips have successfully been removed from four troopers.  Vokara has healed them completely, and there appears to be no lasting effects from the removal.  The chip removed from Commander Wolffe was already damaged and nonfunctional when it was removed.  We suspect the damage was due to head trauma that he had previously sustained.  That leaves three functional chips to study.  Vokara, Skywalker, and Swan each have one and are examining them biologically, mechanically, and cybernetically.  They are working to understand the chip and remotely deactivate it as we speak.  Unless we pull every possible healer in the order and the Medic Corps, we have no chance of de-chipping every trooper surgically.  They nonfunctional chip may yield information on weaknesses in its structure.”

“I suppose knocking them in the heads isn’t a viable option,” Obi-Wan joked darkly, though Ahsoka knew he wouldn’t be capable of such a thing.

Mace seemed to actually be considering it.  “Of course it is not an option for proactive removal, but it could be a non-fatal counter attack incase of emergency.”  The other Jedi looked grim and vaguely ill, but Ahsoka knew from Fulcrum’s experience that fighting her way out of vod’e would be traumatic no matter what.

“I agree,” she said quietly, meeting Master Windu’s furrowed gaze across the table.

“How much has Bultar Swan been told?” he asked.

“Only that they are biochips containing potentially dangerous and top-secret programming.  She doesn’t even know where they came from.  She will report directly to me or Skywalker.  Plo vouches for the integrity of his former Padawan.”

“We must plan carefully,” Obi-Wan agreed, “If Sidious has orchestrated his plans this well, we can only assume he has fail-safes we don’t know about.”

“We can’t forget that if he is controlling both sides of the conflict, he controls both militaries. Even if he is successfully ousted from the Senate, there is little preventing him from using his shadow government behind the separatists,” Master Ti said, “The violence will continue.”

 “He will pick off Republic systems one by one. Our forces will be weakened with every battle, but Sidious doesn’t care about collateral damage.  If he can take a planet and its resources, he won’t care if all its inhabitants die.  Especially if they aren’t human,” Ahsoka spoke up, emboldened by the support from the masters, “I saw that in the visions, too.”

“If we hope to match Sidious, we must have multiple plans and fail-safes in place too.  We will make plans to mitigate the damage from the fall of the Republic even as we try to prevent it.  Our primary objective must be removing Sidious from power,” Master Ti said flatly, “So long as he has the full authority of the Chancellorship behind him, it won’t matter if we have the clones de-chipped before he acts against the Jedi.  Some, possibly a large number, may refuse to turn on us, but that will only mean that they will share our fate.”

“If we go through the Senate, we risk tipping him off,” Obi-Wan cautioned, “If we go around them, we risk giving the appearance of a coup. We can’t give Palpatine any justification for labelling the Jedi as traitors.”

“I believe that roughly 2000 systems are either currently or will soon be coming together to attempt to curtail the Chancellor’s power,” Ahsoka recalled.

“Who would our contacts be there?” Master Nu, who had previously been listening intently to the discussion, asked with interest.

“Senators Organa, Amidala, and Mothma are the ones I know.”

“If we can capture or kill Dooku and Grievous he will no longer have a plausible reason to consolidate power,” Master Windu pointed out.

“I’m not sure how much more we can do there,” Obi-Wan reminded him sardonically, “Those have always been our two primary objectives.  They have a way of making convenient getaways.”

“Maybe if we limit Sidious’ knowledge of troop movements, he won’t be able to warn his henchmen.  At the very least we will have the element of surprise,” Master Windu argued, “That would make a nice change of pace.”

“We have to assume that the naval officers are compromised. Tarkin in particular.  If we want our movements to remain a secret, we can only use Jedi accompanied at most by a small clone detachment. Preferably in civilian craft,” Ahsoka said, “If we take Dooku alive, he can testify against his master.”

“He would say anything to save his own skin, and anyone who knows him knows that,” Windu said wryly.

“We need to get the younglings out first,” Master Nu reminded them, “Every move we make is a delicate balance.  We must shield our most vulnerable from the consequences as best we can.”

“The Exploration Corps has the most complete maps in the galaxy, right?” Ahsoka asked, calling up a blue-tinted holomap on the data table, “If we overlay the Exploration Corps and Republic maps, we can see systems that exist only in Jedi records.”  She called up the Republic map in red.  Most of the systems suspended above the table turned purple.  “We should focus on the Outer Rim,” she suggested, indicating a few clusters of systems that remained blue.  “We can send scouts from AgriCorps to make sure the planets are habitable and begin building settlements.  We can send a clan of younglings to each settlement.  Then we erase all records of the planet even in our own archive, in case it falls into Sith hands.”

“That leaves our youngling clans divided and cut off from the rest of the Order with only a couple of creche masters each for protection,” Obi-Wan said.

“I suggest that the youngest Padawans and their masters go with the younglings,” Ahsoka said, “If the rest of the Order is taken out at once, experienced knights and masters will be needed to face the Sith.”  She stole a quick glance at Windu.  His former Padawan was now the Master of one of the youngest Padawans in the Order, unless she had mistaken her timing.  Kanan had confessed to her that he was only a Padawan for six months before Order 66, which meant that Caleb Dume should be Depa Billaba’s new Padawan by now. 

Windu looked deep in thought; Ahsoka could not tell which way his thoughts were going.  “We will contact the Corps,” he said decisively, “Perhaps when our plans are set, the future will become clear again.”

“We should send a messenger directly,” Obi-Wan suggested, “We cannot trust that our communications are not being monitored.”

“I agree with Padawan Tano that the Masters with young Padawans should help protect the younglings.  We should send Depa and her Padawan to make contact with Agri Corps and direct them in selection of the settlement sites.”

“Depa will be well-suited to task,” Shaak said approvingly, “If she is the only one who knows the definite location of all the youngling settlements, they will be even more protected.”

“Is there any other immediate business we should address?” Windu asked, glancing at the chrono.  Soon they would need to begin their staggered departures.

“I believe Padawan Tano is correct in saying we must manage what data we leave, though I am afraid she did not go far enough when she limited her statement to the maps,” Master Nu said, “I appreciate your respect for the centuries of knowledge we have collected, young one, but we cannot afford to be precious about it now.  We must back up the archive and divide it into holocrons and scatter them among the settlements.  Each clan can take them when they evacuate.  If we die, our knowledge will live on in our young ones.  It is better that it be divided than turned to Dark purposes.  We must be prepared to delete the entirety of the library records if the Temple falls.”

Everyone seemed equal parts shocked that Master Jocasta would suggest doing such a thing to her treasured archive and relieved that they hadn’t needed to suggest it.  “We will leave that task to you, Jocasta,” Master Windu nodded, “You know it best.  Shaak, has there been any new information from the chips?”

 “I will continue monitoring the investigation into the chip, but I must return to Kamino to ensure the safety of the troopers there.” 

“But Master,” Ahsoka protested, “ _Rui’emel._ ”  Kamino was the last place she wanted her Hunt Mother to be.

Shaak answered with a soft trill meant to reassure her.  “Do not worry about me, _rui’iell_.  I will leave the investigation on Coruscant in Skywalker’s hands.  I recommend consulting Rex, Cody, Kix, and Wolffe.  We cannot risk making what we know becoming common knowledge among the ranks, but we cannot justify making decisions about their medical care without any representation.”

“The young ones call you _buir_ ,” Mace said thoughtfully, studying her, “Please consider what it would do to them if you were killed by their hands.”

Shaak bowed her head.  “That may be, but that makes it more important that I not abandon them.  I will leave as soon as there is danger.”

“You are one Jedi against thousands of troopers!” Ahsoka cried.

“And there are hundreds of children at the mercy of Kaminoan scientists.  My life is not more valuable than theirs.” Shaak argued, and Ahsoka knew that the argument was lost.

“Very well,” Master Windu conceded, “You will need to make frequent trips to the Temple to report and meet with the council.  As we have said, communications cannot be trusted.  Obi-Wan will be the voice of our committee and give out assignments.  He will be the contact when reports begin to come in.  Padawan Tano, you will also be told whatever information Obi-Wan receives, but I believe that it is best your role in this remains hidden as long as possible.  We don’t want to make you a target.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long delay in updating! This chapter was a struggle. I had a lot of information to get across but I didn't want it to be a data dump. Let me know what you think! Thanks for hanging in there!
> 
> The use of Tolkien's elvish as Togruti is from zinjadu's fantastic series Knight-Errant. It can be found here: https://archiveofourown.org/series/557782  
> I love how they developed the Togruti culture.
> 
> rui'iell: hunt-daughter  
> rui'emel: hunt-mother


	13. Chapter 13

It felt wrong to not be going anything when there was so much to do but until Depa returned from her meeting with the AgriCorps, there was nothing she or anyone else  _could_  do.  Being Temple-bound didn’t help her restlessness.  Sparring would have helped take the edge off, but that was still out of the question. She had at least been cleared by Master Che for walking without crutches— “Just  _walking_ , Padawan Tano, I won’t have you undoing my hard work!” —so she didn’t feel entirely stagnant.  Obi-Wan was wrapped up in research into the Sith curse and receiving reports from various council members. Anakin was busy in the lab for the majority of the time.  Other than her healing sessions and debriefings with Obi-Wan, Ahsoka found herself at loose ends. To fill the time, she floated between projects. 

Yesterday that had meant helping Master Nu download data onto holocrons. Dividing the vast knowledge accumulated by the Jedi over thousands of years was a large task for one person alone. However, to say that Jocasta Nu was exacting would be polite.  Ahsoka was assigned to move basic training modules to every holocron in the collection since the information wasn’t particularly sensitive, but would be useful for teaching younglings.  Master Nu had shooed her out when she caught Ahsoka dozing off and realized that she had been downloading “Jedi training, history of” alongside “Jedi training, level beginner” for the previous two hours.

“We have to be careful with our data size!  Every holocron doesn’t need to have the history of Jedi training programs taking up space,” she scolded. She then patted her on her head. “Go get some rest Padawan Tano,” she commanded before returning to the main data module.

Even though she was exhausted, it was difficult to sleep alone in the apartment. It was easier when Anakin and Obi-Wan were there.  Even if they were in a different room, feeling them in close proximity reminded her where and when she was.  When she woke up from a too-real nightmare, she only had to reach out and feel them there.  During the day, she went to the gardens to meditate and catch what rest she could instead. Vokara, Obi-Wan, and anyone who had a spare moment was keen on reminding her that she should be sleeping as much as possible to aid the healing process.

In the garden, she could hear younglings playing and smell the rich scent of tilled soil and feel the Force flowing through it all.  In meditation she tried to see if the plans they made had changed anything, but it seemed even a glimpse was just out of her reach. She laid on her back underneath the tree she had been meditating under when Yoda found her, straining her eyes for another glimpse of Maori.  These exercises were fruitless. There were no visions, no flashes of the convoree’s green feathers in the canopy, and very little rest.

Now she was leaving her daily check-up with Healer Che— “No you are not ready to start training again.  Maybe in a couple of days we can  _talk_  about light katas.” —and in need of something to do. She realized that she hadn’t spent much time with Anakin in the last couple of days, partly because they were both busy and partly because she was afraid he would ask how their Sith curse research was going.  She couldn’t tell him the truth without telling him about Vader, and she didn’t want to upset whatever balance he had found engrossed in his work.  She dreaded him finding out, afraid that seeing himself fall in that timeline would make him give up hope of fighting off the darkness she now knew was inside him.  That didn’t change the fact that she missed him.  She mentally touched their bond occasionally, just to make sure he was okay and maybe to reassure herself that he was there.  Sometimes she would feel him nudge back.  They still crossed paths in the apartment, but working separately from Anakin felt wrong when he was so near. 

Her mind made up, Ahsoka found her way to the lab Anakin had been holed up in for the last five days.  It was in the isolation ward, so she didn’t run into anyone on the way.  He was concentrating on a data display when she found him.  She cleared her throat to catch his attention.

“Snips!” He greeted her with a lopsided grin, “You made time for your old Master.”

Her heart sank a fraction, “Master, I...”

He placed his hand on the side of her face, guiding her to look up at him. “That was a joke, Snips. I’m the one that hasn’t left this room except for eating and sleeping.  I’ve felt you checking in on me.”

“Someone has to,” she defended, “You wouldn’t even leave for food or rest if we didn’t tell you to.”

“Want to see what I’ve been working on?” he offered nonchalantly, though she knew he was excited. For all his reputation as “The Hero Without Fear,” a reputation she had fallen for as a youngling, her master could be a bit of a dork when it came to tech.

He steered her to the display, which she could now see was connected to a microscanner.  Underneath the lens, the chip looked innocuous.  It was just a tissue sample sitting in nutrient medium.  Studying the display, she recognized the general shape of the cells from biology and basic physiology classes. They looked normal to her inexperienced eye. What she knew wasn’t normal were the thin, dark tendrils forming a web around them and coming together at a branch point. 

“What is it?” she asked. 

“A nanonet. From what I can find, the technology is used therapeutically to treat motor diseases.”

“So, there is a legitimate use to the tech but I don’t think the vod’e have a motor disease. Could it be used as aggression control like the Kaminoans say?”

“I don’t know. I assume so, but those sorts of experiments were considered unethical for medical research,” he said with clear bitterness toward the double standard. Ahsoka heartily agreed with the sentiment. “In this case, based on what Vokara says about the areas of the brain it is wired to, it is assuming motor control and rerouting basic logic circuits.”

“It would make them all but droids!”

“I know,” Anakin frowned. The tech lost its appeal in that context, even for him. And he got enjoyment from refabing droids that had tried to kill him moments before.  “When Tup lost it and killed Tiplee, it was like he wasn’t in there anymore.  His presence felt...” He seemed to be at a loss for words.

“Wrong?” she finished he nodded. “The clone troopers I came across all felt off. Even with the Force I couldn’t tell them apart. It was like their minds had been totally erased.”

“ _I_  sent him to Kamino, right into those long-neck’s clutches.  I didn’t know what else to do. Even Kix agreed and he never likes to send the injured back.”  He took a breath, trying to relax his clenched fists. “Shaak told me what they wanted to do. They wanted to kill him before even investigating. Like he was some sort of rabid animal!  Is that what they do to any injured clone that they think isn’t worth getting battle ready again?”

Ahsoka reached for his flesh hand and held it in both of hers.  She tried soothing him across their bond but it was difficult when she was just as disgusted and angry as she was. “You couldn’t have known.”

“I should have asked.   _I_  of all people should have known to ask. A former slave should know how cheap a sentient life can be.”

Ahsoka didn’t know what to say to that. Anakin never spoke of that part of his past, and she could feel that this wasn’t an invitation to start.  “We know now. We can’t change the past, but we can change what we do in the future. We can send troopers to the Healer Corps off the books. What the Kaminoans said about trooper physiology being too unique for a healer is probably a bunch of poodoo they made up to keep us from finding out their secrets. If we do have to send anyone there, now Shaak knows to be on the lookout.”

“You’re right. We have to do things different. Starting with killing this chip.”

Ahsoka guessed from his tone that his ideal second step would be snapping some scrawny Kaminoan necks. She hoped for their sake the feeling passed.  “How is the chip activated?  Having the wires doesn’t mean anything if it can’t receive signals.”

“There seems to be some sort of audio receiver here,” he said, indicating the branch-point, “It is a nanocomputer. Once it receives the signal, it can send electrical impulses to the nanonet and transmit to the chips around it.”

“I think I know what the signal is.”

“Don’t say it here! We don’t know if triggering one will set them all off. We don’t even know if it has to be said by Sidious or if there is a retraction code.  Bultar is working on that now.  I need to knock out the transmitting capabilities of one so she can start tests.”

“That would be the cleanest and easiest way to deactivate them.  Did Wolffe’s chip give you anything new?”

Anakin toggled to a stored image. At first glance, there didn’t seem to be much difference between the two. “One on the main leads to the computer seems to have been broken and the cells around them appear burnt.”

“Like it shorted out,” Ahsoka realized, “Could we use something like a droid popper to fry the chip’s circuits?”

“I had the same thought Snips, but we can’t be sure that any current strong enough to reach the chip won’t cause injuries.  I don’t guess future you found a way to disable them?”

Ahsoka shook her head sadly. “Rex tried to free his brothers when he had the chance, but once the chip was activated no one survived it being removed.  I think he only tried removing them surgically though.”

“Just like Tup.”

“So how did Wolffe’s chip get damaged?”

“When Ventress hit him, it must have knocked the connection loose and caused a short. It might have just been luck that the chip wasn’t activated by the hit or that there wasn’t damage to the cells outside the chip.”

“So, I guess the fast and easy ways are out then.”

He nodded. “Bultar is working on an interference signal and Vokara is trying to engineer a virus that selectively infects the chip cells.  She said that they were genetically different than the normal cells.” he ran an agitated hand through his hair. “We don’t know the side effects of any of this.”

“Master Ti thinks we should ask the de-chipped vod’e what they want to do.”

Anakin rubbed his face. A bit of scruff was growing on his chin. “I guess that is the best we can do. Putting our plans up to a popular vote with the troops isn’t going to help us keep a secret.”

She almost cracked a smile at that. Everyone knew troopers gossiped like biddy birds. In their case familial trust cast a rather wide net. 

“Not to mention the mass panic.  I know finding out about the plot hit Rex hard. If I were them I would want the kriffing thing  _out_ , not just turned off.”

“Kix is trying to convince us that we need to start rotating the troops through brain surgery, but we don’t have the resources. Even if we could de-chip every medic without being noticed, there is no way we could hide whole battalions recovering post-op and there aren’t enough force healers in the galaxy to do what Vokara did.”

“Maybe if the Healer Corps positions a medical frigate in the outer rim?  We can direct any injuries to them instead of Kamino and the healers can do the removal surgery while they are there and already in need of recovery time. The Kaminoans and the Chancellor won’t like it, but they can’t argue that a Jedi Healer can’t pull of better recovery times than any normal surgeon.  Two birds. One stone.”

“That may be bringing too many in on it, but it is worth bringing up to the council,” Anakin said, “Maybe they will come across more chips that have already been damaged. That may help us find more weak points in the design.  I’m meeting with Vokara and Bultar tomorrow to talk about what they have found so far. I’ll run your idea by them. I should probably find Rex and Kix, too.  Let them know what we’ve found out and see what their vote is.”  He paused, casting his eyes around the room for something else to tell her to keep her around and coming up empty.  “I’m not sure how much more information I’m going to get from the same four scans, so I’m free for lunch if you are?”

Ahsoka could tell he was fibbing. The ration bars on the desk told her that he hadn’t planned on even taking a break to eat.

“I would like that, Master,” she answered with a smile. Usually lunches together while they were on Coruscant meant greasy junk food at Dex’s or a suspicious number of diplomacy meetings over a meal with Senator Amidala, but leaving the temple would wreck any assumptions that she was still in a coma. The Temple’s healthy, perfectly balanced, and objectively tasty food would have to do. 

She turned off toward the commissary, but Anakin caught her shoulder and steered her toward their apartment. “I thought we were getting lunch?”

“We are,” Anakin explained, “But in vision-time you haven’t had Dex’s in about twenty years. That, at least, is something I can fix right away.”

“But I can’t...”

“I’m sure Dex will be happy to sort out a delivery.  Will you have your usual?  The meat-lover’s special?”

“That’s the one!  And chocolate cake for dessert?” she wheedled. 

Anakin rolled his eyes playfully. “Fine. Don’t tell Padmé or Obi-Wan. They’ll accuse me of spoiling you again. I don’t think it needs to be said that Vokara can’t find out about this.”

“Of course, Master.  I won’t tell a soul... if you order the fancy caf to go with the cake.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally a little bit of Master-Padawan bonding time! I love Anakin and Ahsoka's dynamic in the show but I find it hard to write in this context.
> 
> Nano nets are actually a thing! I heard about them in a seminar a few years ago, so they details are fuzzy, but the possible applications seem cool... and do not include mind control. So far they have been used in mouse studies. using this sci-fi version gave me an opportunity to show Anakin being a bit of a tech geek and sneak in a bit of bio ethics... oops.
> 
> As always, thanks for reading!
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr at https://www.tumblr.com/blog/wolf-marauder I plan to start posting outtakes from this fic soon!


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahsoka has a disturbing dream, and something changes.

Ahsoka walked through the dim, silent halls of the Temple. Her steps were deafening against the stone floors.  Even the Force felt quiet.  Uneasy, her steps quickened. She ran to the Room of a Thousand Fountains. She could smell burning.  She raced through the burning garden, looking for someone, anyone. She found an alcove with small, huddled figures. Drawing closer, she realized they were younglings. She didn’t feel them in the Force, because they were dead. She approached the body nearest her and rolled it over. Katooni. The next one. Petro. The next one. Gungi. The next one... Ezra?

 _A dream_ , her rational mind shouted, _this is just a bad dream_. Ezra hadn’t even been born yet. He certainly wasn’t as old as Katooni and her age mates.

She steeled herself against the sight.  She walked farther into the alcove and it turned into a cave. She ignited a white lightsaber to light her way. There were more bodies scattered on the ground. Shaak Ti. Plo Koon. Luminara Unduli. Mace Windu. Yoda. Depa Billaba and an adult Kanan Jarrus draped over her protectively. She avoided looking at them, though she had to be careful not to step on them.  Their eyes seemed to follow her accusingly.  _They aren’t real_ , she reminded herself, _this is a dream_. She continued down the narrow passage, finally reaching an opening. There were three more bodies here. Anakin stared upwards with cold, unblinking eyes.  His arm was cast over Padmé, who was curled around her own rounded belly as if shielding it.  Obi-Wan laid face down in front of them both. His saber was held limply in his outstretched hand.

She dropped to the ground beside her family, feeling for any sign of life.  There wasn’t any.  _Just a dream.  If you wake up Anakin and Obi-Wan will be safe in their rooms._   She took a moment to close dream-Anakin’s eyes and move their bodies to a more natural position.

“You failed, Ahsoka.” She whirled to see Anakin’s ghostly form behind her. He looked at her with disdain, “You failed me. You failed all of us.” At his words, more ghosts appeared. Padmé materialized at his side, glaring coldly at her over the heads of two ghostly infants clutched to her chest. Obi-Wan, standing at Anakin’s other side, just looked disappointed in her.

“You said that you could save us,” Master Ti accused.

“Why did you come back here?” Master Windu challenged.

“I should not have brought you here in the first place,” Plo said with a shake of his head. 

“You aren’t real!” Ahsoka shouted, but the ghosts kept advancing on her. She could see almost everyone she knew from the temple and the vod’e, and everyone Fulcrum knew from the rebellion.  She shuffled backwards to stay out of their reach and get closer to the cave mouth. _Not real. They aren’t real_ , she reminded herself.

Her boot slipped on a loose stone, sending her tumbling backwards. The fall was longer than it should have been. The wind was knocked out of her when she hit the hard ground below. When she recovered, she realized that she wasn’t in the cave anymore. She was on Malachor.

She looked around frantically and called her lightsabers to her hands.  She saw a figure advancing toward her, but it wasn’t Vader.  It was Sideous.  His withered face glared at her from beneath his hood.  His pale skin looked sickly in the red glow of the Sith Temple.  “Did you think you could stop me?” he sneered, drawing his lightsaber.

The cry of a bird echoed throughout the temple.  She and Sideous whipped their heads around to see an enormous convoree swooping through the chamber.  The feathers were familiar.  The size and ferocity were not.  Maori flew at Sideous’ back with talons outstretched.  Ahsoka stared slack-jawed as the bird’s sharp claws pierced his neck.  Sideous cried out in pain, but was helpless to fight off his attacker.  He fell to the floor with blood pouring from the deep slashes in his throat.  Ahsoka looked away with a wince.  When she looked back, Maori was back to her usual size, hooting docilely as she fluttered overhead.  Suddenly, she flew at Ahsoka, picking up speed as she careened toward her.  Ahsoka barely had time to wince before Maori collided with her chest, disappearing in a puff of white smoke.

Ahsoka woke with a gasp.  It took her a moment to catch her breath.  When she did, she reached out in the Force for Anakin and Obi-Wan.  They were there, but something in the Force felt odd.  Ahsoka was pretty certain Master Depa had chosen the locations of the youngling settlements and set the AgriCorps to work. There was a slight shift, like a grain of rice falling on a balance. A balance that was already weighted against them.  It was early in the morning, but Ahsoka felt like it couldn’t wait. Her dream had put her on edge. She jumped out of bed and banged on both of her Masters’ doors.

Mere seconds later, the doors to both rooms whooshed open. Obi-Wan’s hair was sticking up at all angles, but at least he was wearing a full set of sleep clothes. Anakin was just in his basics, lightsaber in hand.

“Wha’s happen’?” Anakin mumbled.

Ahsoka coughed awkwardly. Apparently they both thought the situation was more dire than a weird feeling at...  _kriff_... it was 03:00.  “Sorry... Just... did you feel anything... shift?”

“Shift?” Anakin repeated, puzzled.

“Something changed and I don’t know what. Sorry. I should have waited till morning.”

“It’s fine, little one,” Obi-Wan smiled at her tiredly, “I’ll make us some tea. Anakin, please put a shirt on.”

Anakin cleared his throat uncomfortably, then retreated to his room to get dressed.  He looked more collected when he joined Obi-Wan and Ahsoka around the low table.  She felt guilty for waking them up.  Both of her masters looked exhausted.  Sleep had been elusive and hard-won for all three of them lately.  

“While I admire your eagerness Anakin, perhaps you should put clothes on before launching into a fight. The vod’e already complain that the Jedi don’t wear enough armor,” Obi-Wan noted wryly. 

Ahsoka giggled a bit despite herself to see Anakin blush. “I’m not sure Rex would be all that surprised, to be honest,” she laughed.

Ahsoka knew that the commanders worried about their reckless jetti. Obi-Wan’s beskar sleeve on his saber arm was just a small concession to Cody’s fretting. To Rex’s dismay, she and Anakin were more stubborn. She had only switched to a full shirt when she found that even small abrasions on her midriff were very uncomfortable and itchy. Even then she had stuck it out for a few months just to irritate him. She wondered what Bly thought about Aayla’s get-up, when he wasn’t enjoying the view, that is.   _The lack of armor certainly put the Jedi at a disadvantage when they were shot on the back,_  her mind supplied traitorously.  That grim thought erased any trace of humor at Anakin’s expense.

Obi-Wan set the tea in front of them. It was some calming herbaceous blend, but she couldn’t say which.  While his morning tea was filed as a necessity to wake-up and was therefore pretty consistent, the herbal blends were more of a luxury. They changed depending on what he had been given as gifts or what interesting teas he found when he had the spare credits.  This one was good, she noted, and Mandelorian, judging by the writing on the tin. A gift, then, dearer than ever now that its giver was gone.

“Did you have any new visions?” Obi-Wan asked her. His eyes barely twitched towards Anakin.

“No, at least, I don’t think so.  The things I saw were impossible, since I saw people that haven’t even been born yet in what seemed to be the current time.  I was having a nightmare and when I woke up, something felt different.”

Obi-Wan closed his eyes in meditation. Anakin followed suit.  Ahsoka sipped her tea while she waited.  They resurfaced, looking uneasy. “You are right, little one,” Obi-Wan said, “Something has changed, but I can’t put my finger on how. It doesn’t feel like a shift toward darkness, though.”

“I feel it too.  This is a good thing, isn't it?” Anakin asked. 

“Yes,” Obi-Wan answered slowly, considering each word, “The balance has changed in the moment, but we don’t know if the future has changed. We can be sure that if we felt the light gaining ground, Palpatine did too.”

“What do we do?” Ahsoka asked nervously.

“For now? We act like nothing happened. If you or anyone else has more visions, we will let them guide us further.  Until then, you and Anakin need rest. I will go to Master Yoda and Mace. Even a small shift like that would have made them wake up.”

“What about you?” Anakin asked.

“I’ll be back soon.”

Anakin hummed skeptically, but didn’t contradict his former master. “C’mon, Snips,” he yawned when the door slid shut behind Obi-Wan, “We aren’t getting anything done by sitting up and worrying. Let’s sleep while we can.”

“I don’t know if I can,” she confessed, “The nightmare I had... I don’t want to see it again.”

“Well, if you finish that tea it should help. Obi-Wan says that it helps take the edge off of his anxiety. The Duchess knew he has a way of running himself into the ground. She has been sending that to him for as long as I’ve known him.”

“Has he talked about her?  Since it happened?” she asked.

Anakin shrugged. “You know him.”

Ahsoka wanted to argue that she really didn’t, and she was starting to strongly suspect Anakin didn’t either. They both took his steadiness for granted.

Anakin knocked back his tea in a way that would make Obi-Wan grimace. Ahsoka drank hers more slowly.  It seemed to be doing its job.  Her eyelids were starting to droop as the panic gave way to tiredness.

“C’mon,” Anakin yawned, “Let’s get you to bed.”

“Couch,” she protested, “Wanna hear when Obi-Wan comes back.”

Anakin hesitated. “Fine. I’ll get your blanket and pillow be right back.”

As soon as Anakin left, Ahsoka felt her anxiety creep up again. The tilted feeling in the Force made her feel unsure of everything. She scolded herself for fretting like a youngling and moved to the sofa.  Anakin returned with the pillow and blanket.  He passed them to her and stepped back to study her.  She felt him brush against her mind.

“Do you mind if I stay in here?” he asked casually, “I should listen for Obi-Wan, too.”

“Sure,” she agreed, smiling to herself.  He fetched his own pillow and blanket and made himself a bed on the floor.  They had slept worse places.  He switched the light off with a wave of his hand and Ahsoka listened to his breathing evening out in the darkness and tried to sync hers to match.  “Hey, Anakin?” She called to him.

“Huh?” he grunted sleepily.

“Thank you,” she answered.

“Don’t mention it, Snips.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you think.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahsoka finally gets a glimpse into the future... but it may be more than she bargained for.

Ahsoka groaned, trying to work out the tightness in her back from sleeping on the couch.  Lack of real sleep had left her almost more tired than she had been when she went to bed in the first place. The stolen afternoon of relative leisure with Anakin seemed long ago now.

After their contraband lunch, they had gone to the hanger to find something to work on. Anakin had set to work on transponder network relays, hoping that inspiration on what to do with chips would hit him while using his hands.  She had set to work on one of the transports set aside for the younglings, installing signal scramblers and stripping out anything that could be linked back to the Temple.  The activity wasn’t unusual for them when they were temple-bound, and the mechanics were happy to have a couple sets of competent hands helping out.  They had both been pretty relaxed and things felt almost normal when they returned to their apartment for dinner, all things considered.

Any sense of ease was gone now. Obi-Wan still hadn’t returned, despite his promise to come back and get some rest. It was probably too much to hope for that he had fallen asleep at Master Yoda or Windu’s rooms.  

That left Anakin and his dubious skills in kitchen in charge of breakfast.  It was a good thing neither of them were picky eaters.  The best part of the meal was easily the caf. After the night they had, it was a gift from the Force itself. 

“The real stuff this time,” Anakin said when he set the mug in front of her, “I figure we deserve it.”

Their meal passed mostly in silence. They were both watching to door and waiting for Obi-Wan to come and tell them what to do.

“I think I’ll try to meditate,” Ahsoka said when the food and caf were gone, “Maybe I’ll have a better feeling for what’s happening.”

“Do you want me to join you?”

Ahsoka bit her lip.  She couldn’t afford any bleed over to Anakin. “You need to watch for Obi-Wan,” she insisted.  Anakin nodded and left her on the couch to meditate while he cleaned up in the kitchen.  If Obi-Wan were here, he would surely say that Anakin cleaning was a sure sign of the coming apocalypse.

Ahsoka tried to reconnect with the old visions for what felt like hours, but it felt like slamming her head into a wall. She opened her eyes when Anakin shook her by the shoulder. “You are letting yourself get frustrated,” he chided. 

“That’s because it’s frustrating,” she snipped, “It is like there is a mental block there, keeping me from where I need to be to see anything.”

“Could it be that you don’t want to see?”  Obi-Wan’s presence startled her. She bristled at his suggestion.

“Of course I want to see,” she answered testily.

“You misunderstand me, Ahsoka,” he soothed, “I know that consciously you want to see, but your subconscious may be protecting itself from going into a vision state since the last time was a very painful experience.”

“Were you, Master Yoda, or Master Windu able to see anything?”

Obi-Wan shook his head. “If anything, the darkness shrouding our vision is thicker than ever. The Chancellor’s doing, no doubt.”

“Then why isn’t he blocking Ahsoka, too?”  Anakin asked.

Obi-Wan shrugged. “Maybe he believes a Padawan that is, as far as he knows, in a coma and on the outs with the Order isn’t worth the effort.”

“What if it has something to do with Mortis and the Daughter?” Ahsoka asked, giving voice to her half-formed theory.  She could see in their eyes that they didn’t remember.  Perhaps that was a good thing, given what else was revealed there. 

Obi-Wan scratched his beard thoughtfully. Judging by its scruffiness, he had been doing that a lot in the past hours. “The father, the son, and the daughter are a common motif in the old Jedi temples. The son represents the dark side, the daughter the light, and the father is the one who keeps the balance between his children.  I thought it was a dream...”

Ahsoka leaned forward in her seat. “What did you think was a dream?”

“I dreamt that we met them. You were dying and Anakin... But if the Daughter  _did_  revive you with her own life-force...”

“I’ve seen her convoree, Maori.  I dreamt of her last night.  She ripped out Sidious’s throat with her talons and flew into my chest.”

“Do you believe that whatever is left of the Daughter is sending you the visions?”

“I don’t know,” Ahsoka shrugged, “It makes sense that an embodiment of the Ashla would resist a Sith uprising and I guess she knows that I owe her one.  Maori tended to follow me around when I was with the rebellion, so it seemed like she was keeping an eye on things then.”

“Would either of you like to explain what is going on?” Anakin asked impatiently.

Ahsoka and Obi-Wan looked at each other.  It would make sense that the father bound up Anakin’s memories more tightly than anyone else’s, given that he didn’t want to affect fate’s natural course. It was ironic that they were doing the same thing, for the opposite reason. 

“A shared vision,” Obi-Wan said so confidently, even in the force it felt almost true. Obi-Wan was a shockingly good liar when he wanted to be. “We don’t quite understand it yet.  It could explain the strength and clarity of your visions, though, Ahsoka. We need further study and meditation.  Before that, we need to see if you can call up more visions to explore the shift in the Force’s balance.”

“I’ve tried,” Ahsoka huffed. “I’ve been trying all morning.”

“We will need to try other techniques to help you connect with your visions, or perhaps to help you find your connection to the Daughter.  I will go get Master Yoda. You two meet me by the meditation chambers.”

Ahsoka followed Master Yoda and Obi-Wan into a room with a pool in the center with meditation mats laid on either side.  Anakin stood close by with his hand on her shoulder.  He reached across their bond to reassure her.  She nudged him in return.  She was hesitant to allow him to be here, but as long as he wasn’t participating in the meditation it should be fine.

Obi-Wan had explained the basic properties of this meditation space before they entered.  The salinity of the meditation pool was so high, all but the densest of beings could float without any effort. The chamber was perfectly quiet, and cool without being cold. It didn’t even smell of anything besides salt.

“The chamber is designed to give as little sensory input as possible,” Obi-Wan told her, “It helps you hone your focus on your visions.”

Ahsoka nodded nervously.  She knew that whatever she revisited calling back old visions, it would not be pleasant. It would also be difficult. It would require more focus than she had ever harnessed. She would have to leech strength from Obi-Wan and Yoda to maintain it.

“You don’t have to do this.” Her eyes snapped to Anakin. He was looking at her like she was the strongest, bravest Jedi he knew. He was looking at her like she believed a proud father would. It strengthened her resolve. She couldn’t lose him. 

“I can do it.” She wasn’t sure if she was reassuring Anakin or herself. Her master nodded and helped her tie on the blindfold.  He gave her a reassuring squeeze of her hand, which she returned. She passed him her sabers, then she heard his footsteps backing away. She took Obi-Wan and Yoda’s hands and waded into the water.  The water was lukewarm and oddly thick feeling from all the salt.

“Stop here,” Obi-Wan instructed her.  His voice sounded from her right.  She felt his hand leave hers and move to her shoulder.  He supported her as Ahsoka tipped backwards, allowing her legs to rise to rise to the surface so she was floating effortlessly on her back. Her montrals felt strangely muffled half submerged in the water.

“Relax,” Obi-Wan encouraged her, taking her hand again.  She focused on releasing all her muscles, from her feet up.  She trusted the water to cradle her, and her Master to pull her out if she needed him to.  Yoda and Obi-Wan’s hands were an anchor to the physical world that she could reach for if she began to get lost.  She reached into the force.  She could see Obi-Wan and Yoda to her right and left like two warm, bright suns.  Theirs was a light for nurturing and making things grow.  She could see her own light, too.  It was more volatile, perhaps, but strong and bright.  Anakin... Anakin was a supernova. His light was blinding in its power, and unstable.  He didn’t feel dark at all right now though.  Even a supernova collapses into a black hole, she reminded herself, and even the brightest stars burn themselves out.

Ahsoka carefully blocked herself off from Anakin even as she pulled golden strands of light from Obi-Wan and Master Yoda through their joined hands.  She let herself sink farther into the force, even as her body floated on the water.  She could hear the crystals in her lightsabers sing, and let herself become surrounded by their hum. 

The glow of the masters around her was still present, but she turned her focus to her visions. They were warping, flickering between what she saw and altered versions of the possible future.

_The broken bodies of younglings and creche-masters were scattered in the temple hall… in an unfamiliar jungle…  They had lightsaber burns… now, they only had blaster wounds._

_She saw her own orange hands affixing a strand of Padawan beads to Katooni’s headdress.  Other newly-minted Padawans and their masters stood beside them, though their numbers and identities and even the room behind them shifted.  Anakin and Obi-Wan were there, then they weren’t._

_A council of faceless Jedi sat in the council chamber overlooking Coruscant, discussing how they would rebuild… a small group met in a remote, crumbling temple, wondering aloud how the Order could possibly survive… while younglings slept, their masters kept watch, asking each other in hushed voices if they should try to make contact with other clans yet._

_The vod’e in the blue-painted armor of the 501 st clashed against the red-armored clones of the Coruscant home guard.  Vod’e fought and died on the steps of the temple in defense of their _jetti…  _Jedi, some familiar some not, fell at the hands of a few or all of the troopers on various battlefields.  Vod’e turned on each other based on whether the chip programming took hold.  “Good soldiers follow orders” were simultaneously the last words many would say or hear._

Ahsoka pulled more on Obi-Wan, shielding some of her visions from Yoda as they became more personal. 

_Anakin glared at her with yellow eyes full of hatred… she watched the light leave his blue eyes as he died in her arms… his eyes were lit up with joy as he passed her a squirmy, squalling infant before turning his gaze to Padm_ _é_ _._

_She looked up to see Anakin standing above her.  She stood perfectly still as he brought his lightsaber blade close to her face to carefully cut her Padawan braid and make her a Jedi knight… She brought her sabers up to catch his powerful downward blow in a saber lock…_

_She saw herself on the run. Fighting a rebellion, though the faces shifted.  Sometimes Anakin was there, Obi-Wan or Padmé working out some bit of strategy with them. She saw herself dying on missions or killed in the initial purge. Anakin’s cry of grief and denial rang in her montrals._

_She saw herself dying at the hands of her master.  Struck down by Vader’s lightsaber in the Sith Temple, or on Mustafar. Struck down by the familiar blue saber in defense of the Temple or in the chancellor’s office. Even now she could hear its crystal humming nearby._

_She saw herself killing Vader, her sabers cutting through the black armor and destroying the life support system inside… Anakin miscalculated the blow aimed at her, leaving himself too open.  She took advantage, plunging both sabers into his chest even while she choked back her cries... She approached him quietly, while his back was turned, her sabers poised to strike._

_She could hear screaming. She couldn’t breathe, something was choking her.  Her vision faded to black._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay... life has been a bit crazy. My bff got married and work has been super busy! I'm excited to finally get this chapter out since it was one of the first ones I wrote for this fic. It just took a while to write some sort of transition into it that made sense. My muse has been much more interested in playing around in this AU or starting new stories than writing that pesky transition.  
> I hope you enjoy the chapter! Let me know what you think!


	16. Chapter 16

When Ahsoka came to, the first thing she saw was Anakin’s face crowding her view. She pushed him away reflexively, and he flew backwards to slam against the opposite wall. The bond between them flared with pain. She looked at him and remembered where and when she was. Obi-Wan and Yoda had apparently passed out when she did and were just waking up. She and Anakin were both soaked. He must have pulled her from the water when she went into distress. Her ribs screamed in agony as deep, hacking coughs worked to expel the water she had inhaled in her disoriented panic. She could taste the salt and bile on her tongue.

“I’m sorry,” she gasped, still struggling for breath, looking over to make sure she hadn’t accidentally knocked her master unconscious.

Anakin looked like he had just watched his whole world implode. “Master?” she asked cautiously.

“I need to go,” he choked and scrambled to his feet and out the door.

“Master! Wait!” She shouted and chased after him. She knew she wouldn’t be able to catch him if he didn’t want her to. She still wasn’t in peak condition and now she was exhausted by channeling her visions. “Anakin! Please!”

He slowed and then stopped all together. Ahsoka caught him and clung to him like a small child. She didn’t care that they were making a spectacle of themselves running and shouting through the Temple, soaked to the skin. She let their fellow Jedi pass them by and ignored their puzzled looks.  
After a moment’s hesitation, she felt him holding her just as tightly. She felt a twinge in her newly-healed ribs but didn’t push him away. She only held him tighter. He was shaking and she could feel his tears falling on her head.

Once Anakin had calmed down, Ahsoka dragged him to a nearby classroom. “How much did you see?”

“Enough. More than enough.” Anakin shook his head. “How can you even look at me, never mind touch me?”

“I trust you,” Ahsoka said calmly, because someone had to be.

“Clearly, you shouldn’t,” he scoffed bitterly.

“You haven’t done anything yet.”

“You have no idea what I have done,” he muttered, his tone taking a dark edge.

“I know about the raiders on Tatooine. I know that you and Padmé are the only ones who should know. I saw it happen.” Ahsoka looked at him unflinchingly, her eyes never leaving his face.

Anakin looked deeply ashamed. “They killed my mother,” he said, though it didn’t sound like he even believed his own excuse.

“I know.”

“What I did... it came from the Dark Side.”

“I know that too.”

“That... _darkness_... is still inside me. Waiting. I never thought it could turn on the people I love.”

“You didn’t know that someone was looking to weaponize it.” Ahsoka sat down wearily. “I need you to tell me exactly what you saw,” she said, “then I’ll answer whatever questions you ask. I won’t hold anything back this time.”

“I just saw a flash. I was trying to wake you up after I pulled you out of the pool and our minds connected. I was looking through your perspective. Only this time I wasn’t trying to help you. I was fighting you. You were on the ground and had only just managed to catch my red lightsaber on your crossed blades. You were losing strength fast. I was wearing a mask, but you knew it was me. I saw my eyes in a crack in the mask. I was a Sith. Does that vision end with me killing you?”

Ahsoka hesitated, then nodded. “That is how I died in the original vision. Then I went to some sort of in between place and saw everything else.”

Anakin seemed to crumple in on himself at her words. His face was hidden from her, but she could feel his grief and fear. It made her nauseous. “You said that the Sith Lord that kills you also kills Obi-Wan. Does that mean I kill him too?”

“Yes,” Ahsoka answered, “At least, you did in the original vision. I think he outlives me by a few years.”

“Does Obi-Wan know?”

Ahsoka shook her head. “He specifically asked not to know what happens to him. He knew that you fell in the original vision, but that is all. He is the only one who knows, unless Master Yoda saw more of my vision than I meant for him to.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I wanted to protect you.” The explanation felt feeble and inadequate now. Her shield between her and Anakin had only fallen for a moment. A moment was all it took.

“Protect me? I’m the one you need to protect yourself from!”

“The future is changing,” She insisted, forcing him to meet her eyes, “You know what other futures I saw? I saw you knighting me. I saw you dying as you fought beside me. I saw us living and happy long after this war was over. I saw you and Padmé raising your younglings. I want that future, Anakin. I want a future with you in it. I know it is possible.”

“I could destroy everything. You’ve told me everything except what was important. If I fall, I will know about the rebellion and what Senators support it, about clones being de-chipped and the younglings being sent away.”

“It doesn’t matter,” she said stubbornly, “I won’t let you fall.”

“No,” he said quietly, “You won’t have a choice. I’m turning myself over to the council.”

“What? No!” Ahsoka protested.

He gave her a tired smile. “I have to, Snips. I will request to be held in confinement until the Chancellor is caught. That way, I can’t hurt anyone.”

“You can stand with us! Just please come talk to Obi-Wan. What about Padmé and the babies?”

“I’m doing this for them! For all of you.” He sighed. “I will go back to the apartment, but only to pack some things and say goodbye. You’ve exhausted yourself, Ahsoka. You are shivering in those wet clothes. I’ll help you back.”

The wet clothes had very little to do with her shivering, but her legs and back were aching so she allowed Anakin to shoulder some of her weight. He clung to her tightly as they made their way down the corridor. Obi-Wan was waiting for them in their apartment’s common room. Anakin couldn’t look him in the eyes.

“You know, don’t you?” Obi-Wan said quietly. Anakin released Ahsoka only to fall to his knees in front of his former master.  Obi-Wan looked at Ahsoka in confusion.

“He’s not taking it well,” she said mildly, “He wants us to lock him up.”

“You haven’t done anything wrong, Anakin,” Obi-Wan reassured him.

“But I could,” Anakin sobbed, “I could destroy everything. You have to stop that from happening.”

Obi-Wan crouched down to hold his former Padawan tightly to his chest. Anakin was shaking. Ahsoka could feel his suffering bleeding across the bond.

“Any one of us could fall. We will protect you, Anakin. We are here and the future is not set. Ahsoka’s new visions had some terrible futures, yes, but there were wonderful ones too. We need you to help us fight for those futures.”

“But what if I fall? I need you to promise me something.”

“Whatever you need, Anakin.”

“I need you to end me if I’m too far gone to do it myself.”

Obi-Wan recoiled in horror. “Please don’t make me promise that. You are my brother, Anakin. I love you.”

“It would be a mercy!”

Ahsoka knew then what the last flash in her vision was, and she knew what she had to do. “I’ll be the one that does it,” she said, and both Anakin and Obi-Wan’s eyes snapped to her, “I saw it in a vision. That was the one that made me pass out. It will break my heart, but I won’t let you become a slave to the Sith.”

Anakin reached his hand out to her and pulled her into the hug. “Thank you, Snips. Thank you.”  
Now Ahsoka was crying again. “I can’t lose you, Skyguy. Please don’t make me do that. I know I won’t recover.”

Eventually, the tears subsided. Ahsoka was so tired, she felt herself drifting off. She wriggled herself out of her masters’ arms. Anakin had apparently exhausted himself as well, since he was now sleeping against Obi-Wan. She suspected Obi-Wan had used the force to push him into unconsciousness. He moved Anakin to the couch and settled into a chair beside him. “Go get some rest, Ahsoka. I will watch over him and make sure he doesn’t take matters into his own hands.”

“But Master...”

“If you are going to get well, you need sleep. You are about to drop.” Ahsoka relented and went her own room and changed out of her wet clothes. Her skin was crusted with salt, but she didn’t have the energy for a shower. She just brushed it off as best as she could and put on some nightclothes that she had left on the floor that morning. She went to Anakin’s room and retrieved a dry set of clothes for him. Obi-Wan nodded tiredly in acknowledgement when she set the stack of clothes next to him.

“Wait,” Obi-Wan stopped her when she turned to go to her room. He looked like he had aged a decade in an afternoon. “Take these.” He handed her his and Anakin’s lightsabers. The metal hilts were cold in her hands. She clutched them so tightly her fingers went numb. “Hide them, and yours. They are in your room already. Just for tonight. If I fall asleep... Anakin isn’t thinking clearly. If he... well, we don’t have to make it easy for him.”

Ahsoka nodded mutely, not trusting her voice. On impulse, she pulled Obi-Wan into another hug. He patted her back reassuringly. They did not give each other meaningless platitudes. “Rest now, Little One,” he murmured, sending her on her way.

In her room, Ahsoka locked all four sabers in the box Anakin gave her, and put the box under her mattress. If anyone wanted to get them, they would need to pick her up to do it. The lump in the bed was uncomfortable, but worth it.

Her eyes were sore and itchy from crying, her ribs were hurting again, her throat felt raw from screaming, and her head ached. Her connection to the Force felt strange, too. It felt raw like a patch of skin that had chafed against a strap on a heavy pack. She didn’t know how she could possibly sleep like this. She could feel Obi-Wan’s sorrow and anxiety from the other room, but at least Anakin felt calmer now that he was asleep. No, that wasn’t exactly true. He started feeling calm when she promised to kill him if he began to fall. The wave of relief rolling off of him broke her heart all over again. The exhaustion must have caught up to her, because she faded out soon after her head touched the pillow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, the cat's out of the bag. Anakin has some serious soul-searching to do. At least he won't have to do it alone!


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahsoka finds an ally in an unlikely source.
> 
> “Morning?” she meant it as a greeting but it came out more as a question.  
> “I know I am not the person you would like to see,” he said wryly.  
> “I wouldn’t say that, Master,” she answered cagily.

Anakin and Obi-Wan were both gone when Ahsoka woke up. She would have panicked if it weren’t for the message in Anakin’s messy scrawl. 

 _Meditating with Obi-Wan. Feeling better today. Thanks, Snips.  -Anakin_.

 She was apparently really out of it if she hadn’t noticed him coming in to leave a note by her bed.  At least all four lightsabers were still under her mattress.

Her head was still pounding.  She padded into the kitchen, hoping that a cup of caf would help.

“Padawan Tano,” a voice called just as she was taking a mug from the cupboard. She fumbled it but managed to keep it from shattering on the floor. She walked cautiously into the common area and was shocked to see Master Windu on the couch with a tea service on the table in front of him.  “Morning?” she meant it as a greeting but it came out more as a question.

“I know I am not the person you would like to see,” he said wryly.

“I wouldn’t say that, Master,” she answered cagily.

To her surprise, Master Mace Windu  _laughed_. “l know you are thinking it though. You are just too mature to say so.”

She sat across the low table from him. She wasn’t going to stand on formality in her own apartment when he wasn’t even invited.  “Master Kenobi let me in,” he said by way of explanation, as though he didn’t have override codes to every door in the temple. “Master Yoda said that the visions you had while in the meditation pool were... intense.”

Ahsoka did her best not to freeze up. Had Yoda seen more that she had wanted him to?  Was Windu here to tell her that they were locking her Master away?  No, Obi-Wan wouldn’t let that happen, even if Anakin was ready to throw himself in the deepest dungeon he could find. Or worse. At the very least, he wouldn’t allow her to find out like this.

“Intense...” she stammered, “Yes, they were. A bunch of conflicting futures all hitting me at once.”

Windu nodded his head in understanding and poured tea for them both. “I have had visions like that since before the war began. They certainly take their toll.  To see many possible outcomes without knowing what choices lead to what future can be paralyzing.  Not to mention the headaches... those I have some remedy for.”  He indicated the tea he had poured them both and the carved box beside the steaming teapot. “This blend is a favored remedy among Korunnai mystics. It helps ease the pain from intense visions and take a bit of the edge off the anxiety. I thought you could use some, so I brought a box over.”

Ahsoka recognized that this peace offering was as close as she was going to get to either an apology or a thank you from Master Windu. “That was thoughtful of you, Master.”

“Lately my vision has been shrouded in darkness. It makes it difficult to see anything at all. I can only hazard a guess as to why yours has remained clear.”

“Why is that?”

“The Sith believed he had removed you from the equation. Vokara Che was amazed you survived long enough to make it to the halls of healing after the explosion. With you out of the Order and probably dead, he felt no need to cloud your vision. He under estimated you, Padawan Tano.  Too many things that didn’t make sense before seem clearer now. I can feel that you aren’t lying, so you at least believe that what you saw was true.”

“I believe it is one of the possible futures, but even after the second group of visions, parts of that future were gone and new ones had come up.”

“You saw your Master’s fall, didn’t you, Tano?” Windu asked her gravely.

Her heart dropped to her feet. She felt small, once again the child looking up at her masters in the Hall of Judgement as they threw her to the wolves scratching at the door and baying for blood. She felt powerless.  For the first time she realized that it wasn’t just her and Anakin’s necks on the line.  She wasn’t afraid for herself. She had been cast out before and survived. She could do it again.  Now Obi-Wan was tied up in this, too.  If the rest of the council found out that Obi-Wan knew about Anakin almost as soon as she had, the consequences would be worse for him than her. She was a Padawan. He was a master.  He also wouldn’t allow Ahsoka to take the fall alone. 

Ahsoka couldn’t force any words out of her mouth. The truth was too damning and he would see a lie. “I understand why you have kept that part of your vision to yourself, though it would have been valuable information for the Council,” Master Windu said sternly.  He studied her over his folded hands.  “You will not be punished.  I assume Master Kenobi is aware of what you saw concerning Skywalker.”  Ahsoka remained silent.  “I am not asking you to incriminate him.  I must know if the plans we have made so far include the proper fail-safes.”

Ahsoka nodded.  “Anakin doesn’t know anything besides the plans to deactivate the chips.  He didn’t even know that I saw him Fall until yesterday when my shields slipped for a second when I was coming out of the visions.  He was very… distressed… by what he saw when our minds connected.  I saw a lot of futures where he _didn’t_ fall, though.”

“I have seen Skywalker Fall, too,” Master Windu said, “As I have seen many things. I have seen him as our greatest hero and our most dangerous villain.  I am afraid those brief flashes of possible futures have colored our relationship somewhat.”

Ahsoka snorted. “You could say that.  He thinks you hate him.”

“The visions may have made it difficult for me to trust him, but I do not hate Anakin Skywalker. I will not take action against him while he is still an innocent man, even if he is routinely defiant, petulant, and selfish.  My strategy for years has been to keep him at arm’s length in order to mitigate the damage. Your initial visions show that strategy is doomed to failure.”

“I can still save him,” Ahsoka insisted stubbornly, “I can save everyone.”

Master Windu shook his head.  “That way leads to madness, young one. Even if you see the future, you cannot control it. You may very well save the future of the Order, but only Skywalker can save himself. You have given him the tools to fight with, and that can make all the difference.”

Truthfully, she was relieved to find an ally in Master Windu. His reaction to her master’s possible future was unexpected to say the least.  She thought she could offer him some bit of hope. 

“Master Windu, I know who survives the purge...”

“I do not want to know, Tano. I am not afraid to die.”

“I know you aren’t. I thought you should know that someone in your line outlives me, and was training another when I died.”

“I am glad to know that someone carries the order into the future and that I may be part of it in some small way.  The thought is comforting.”  Master Windu studied his folded hands.  “Let us keep our minds on the immediate future for now.  Master Kenobi is mediating with Skywalker now.  _That_ should have told me something was amiss with him.  We will have to find a way to limit the damage he can do if he falls while also trying to prevent his fall.  I will speak to Kenobi when he returns.  Until then, you should record the contents of all of your visions.”  He slid a data crystal across the table to her.

“In case my master kills me, you mean.”  Master Windu remained silent.  Ahsoka nodded grimly and took the crystal in her hand.  “It feels familiar,” she said.

“It belonged to Qui-Gon Jinn,” he answered, “This was the crystal the Jedi artisans felt would have the greatest connection to you and Kenobi, besides your own crystals, of course.  We will meet in small councils soon.  You _will_ have to tell the other members of the small council then.  There are enough secrets without keeping them from each other.”

Ahsoka bit her lip, head bowed.  “I understand.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Thanksgiving to my American readers!  
> I hope this chapter reads well. I find Windu really difficult to write. 
> 
> Find me on Tumblr at https://www.tumblr.com/blog/wolf-marauder Asks are open!


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahsoka gains a bit of insight into her Master and Grand-master.

Ahsoka was still holding her now cold mug in a white-knuckled grip when Obi-Wan returned. Alone.

“Sorry to spring Mace on you like that,” he apologized, “But I wanted to get Anakin away from him before he spilled and I figured you could hold your own.”

“How is Anakin?” She noticed that Obi-Wan didn’t seem unduly concerned.

“He is speaking with Master Plo at the moment.  In his capacity as a mind healer.” Ahsoka’s eyes widened and her lekku twitched in surprise.  “I know. I was shocked too.  How did your talk with Master Windu go?”

“Well, we aren’t being burned as heretics or expelled from the Order.  So good, I guess.”

That drew Obi-Wan up short. “Excuse me?”

“He knows about Anakin. He knows that I know. He guessed that you knew, but I didn’t confirm or deny that.  He was... surprisingly understanding.”

“I’m sorry,” Obi-Wan repeated, “If I’d have known... He said he was here to make sure you didn’t have Seer’s sickness after your visions yesterday.”

“That was technically true.  He brought me tea.  I’m fine, really. Well, my head still feels like it is about to cave in, but that has been going on for a couple of days now.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“It didn’t seem like the most pressing issue with the sudden shift and the visions and Anakin all happening. Master Windu said the tea would help, but I guess I have been too distracted.”  She nodded to the still-full cup.

Obi-Wan sniffed. “He’s right... if you can stomach it. I’m afraid it is an acquired taste.”

Ahsoka looked down at the swirling cobalt-blue brew with renewed suspicion.  The throbbing pain was only getting worse though, so she knocked it back in two large gulps. “It tastes like dirt and rotting jogan fruit,” she groaned.

“I believe Mace describes it as ‘sweet with earthy overtones.’” Obi-Wan laughed.

“Then his tastebuds are broken.”  Ahsoka massaged her temples. It may have been the power of suggestion, but the pain did seem to be letting up.

Obi-Wan sat across the table from her, then paused. His head tilted as though listening to a faint noise. His eyes turned to the crystal sitting by the tea set.  He held it up between them, still listening.

“This was my Master’s. Where did you get this?” His voice was curiously flat.

“Master Windu gave it to me. He said that the artisans recommended that I use it for a data crystal because it belongs in our lineage.”

He hummed in response, fingers tapping of the table distractedly. There was something in Obi-Wan’s face that she could not quite discern.  It wasn’t quite sorrow or anger.  It only lasted a second before it was quashed down. “Astute,” he said finally, “Though I think Qui-Gon would appreciate the irony. Recording possible futures isn’t very ‘in the moment.’” Ahsoka could hear the scare quotes around the phrase.  He hardly ever spoke of his master, though Anakin spoke fondly of Master Qui-Gon.  “Did you know I used my Master’s lightsaber to defeat Maul?  I continued to use it until I could build myself a new one.  This crystal is very familiar to me. I never thought I would see it again.”

“I’m sorry, Master,” she said, though she wasn’t quite sure what for.

“Not at all, Little One. This just brings back many memories. Again, not very ‘in the moment’ of me.  You know it was Qui-Gon who believed Anakin was the chosen one?”

“No, I didn’t.  The father on Mortis seemed to believe it.  And in the future, he did kill the Sith... eventually.”

“If the prophecy is true, we are left in a difficult position. If it is his destiny to defeat the Sith then keeping him out of the way may not be possible, if only because Palpatine clearly believes the prophecy and will tear the galaxy apart looking for him.  If the prophecy is bunk, we will still require every able-bodied Jedi we have to defeat Palpatine and Anakin is one of our most powerful and accomplished swordsmen.”

“No matter what decision we make, it could be the wrong one.  Master Windu wants me to tell the small council everything I know. All of it.”

“About Anakin?” Obi-Wan asked uneasily.

“I don’t think he knows about Padmé and the twins yet, but can we keep that secret?  I’m sure people suspect something and that  _something_  is going to be pretty obvious soon.  Especially if we ask for protection for Padmé and her  _Force-sensitive_  babies.”

Obi-Wan pulled at his beard pensively.  “This wouldn’t be the first time Anakin’s... attachments... have been called into question.  I don’t think anyone will be all that surprised.  If we want the Order’s full protection for Padmé, we can’t hide the danger she is in any longer.”

“Should we talk to her and Anakin first?”

“Perhaps. To not give them any warning feels like betraying their trust.”

“I guess we will have to wait until Anakin gets back from talking to Master Plo.  You should rest until then, Master. Did you eat yet? I can make breakfast for us.”

“I’m quite alright, Ahsoka,” Obi-Wan assured her.

“No, you aren’t, Master. You’ve barely slept four out of the past forty-eight hours, if that. You look like you’ve been run over by a gundark. There is nothing we can do right now, so you might as well rest.”

“I suppose you are right,” he said begrudgingly.  Ahsoka rose to pull something together for breakfast, leaving Obi-Wan studying Qui-Gon Jinn’s crystal. 

 

After she and Obi-Wan had eaten and Obi-Wan had gone to his room to take a nap, Ahsoka took the crystal to a meditation room to try and become attuned to it.  Focusing was difficult.  She was tempted to check in on Anakin—he was there on the edge of her awareness—but she didn’t want to infringe even further on his privacy while he was hashing out trauma with Master Plo.

Ahsoka held the crystal in her palm, allowing the light to dance across its facets.  She focused on the kyber’s unique song.  It would be easier if she had actually _known_ Master Jinn.  She could feel the traces of him through Obi-Wan and Anakin and even Master Yoda, but didn’t have a connection to him herself.  Slowly, she felt the crystal warm to her.

After a while, she felt Anakin nudge her across their bond, looking for her.  She sent back an impression of her location.  When Anakin found her in the meditation room, he didn’t speak.  He just sat across from her and lowered his walls. He didn’t show everything; she knew from last night that Anakin’s mind was painful when his walls were completely down.

Anakin felt different when he reached out to her across their bond. He wasn’t panicked or angry like last night. He wasn’t brilliantly happy as he was in his most lighthearted moments. He was something in between.

Ahsoka let him in as well, let him see her concern, her anxiety, her love.  Her determination.

Anakin drew a deep breath, and Ahsoka knew their brief moment of shared meditation was over.  Anakin wanted to talk.  She opened her eyes to see him trying to find the words. His mouth opened and closed on aborted attempts at speech.  She waited for him, wordlessly giving him her support.

“Obi-Wan and I had a long talk this morning. A talk that was long overdue. Talking with him and later, with Plo... It helped me see things about myself that, honestly, I didn’t want to see.” His hands were clenching and unclenching almost rhythmically.  She reached out to take them in her own.  He sighed and looked her in the eyes. “I’m not a good Jedi,” he said finally.

“Master!” Ahsoka interrupted, but Anakin shook his head to stave off her arguments.

“No, Ahsoka. You and Obi-Wan have always wanted to see the best in me and it has blinded you both. Even after you saw the way I could betray you and everyone else, you both tried to protect me from myself and everyone else.  You both put yourselves in danger of expulsion and from the Sith for _me_.  Seeing what you saw, even for one moment, and knowing the truth about what you both tried to do for me made me see myself.  I want things I shouldn’t. I hold on to things and to people too tightly.  I want power that no one person should possess.  I meet concern with suspicion.  I let fear and anger rule my choices.  I am selfish and I love selfishly.”

Ahsoka wanted to correct him, but she couldn’t. She could see that even in an unfallen Anakin, none of it was untrue.  But she did know that there was more to him than that.

“You saved me,” she reminded him, “You are a loyal friend and protector. When no one else stood by me, you did.”

“And when you left, I was angry at you  _and_  the council. Even though you made the right decision for yourself at the time, even though you were hurting, I didn’t think about that the most. I thought about how you were leaving me. How the council took  _my_  Padawan.  Force, how selfish is that, making the worst thing that had ever happened to you a personal attack on  _me?_ ”

“For what it’s worth, it might have been. Just not by the council. Tarkin was the one that demanded for me to be tried as part of the GAR instead of a Jedi.  It makes sense considering that the Chancellor wants to isolate you.”

He withdrew his hands from hers. She could hear the servos in his mechanical hand straining it was clenching so tight. “The bombing, too?” he asked through gritted teeth.

Ahsoka nodded hesitantly. “Rex said that he didn’t think the bomb was meant for Padmé. It was remote activated while I was sweeping the room. There was a window that they would have been able to see in from.”

Anakin buried his face in his hands. “I don’t know what is worse, believing that I am paranoid and losing my mind or finding out I really am at the middle of a conspiracy... even if it’s not the conspiracy I thought I was.”

“Have you talked to Padmé about... all of this?”  She gestured indistinctly at him.

Anakin shook his head. “I think she has suspected something was wrong with me for a while. She... well, she asked that we stop seeing each other a few months ago.”

“She  _what_?”  Ahsoka didn’t think that there was much left that could surprise her, but that surely did.

“I lost control. I nearly killed Clovis because I was jealous. Obviously, you know that didn’t last long since the twins happened after that.  I haven’t talked to her much since she came to see you at the Temple.  I’ve met her in the city a few times, but going near the Senate makes me feel uneasy now that I know about Palpatine.”

“What happens now?” Ahsoka asked quietly. 

“I don’t know, Snips.  Obi-Wan thinks that it will be obvious that something is wrong of I am confined to the Temple, so for now I am supposed to go about business as usual.  Master Plo agreed when I talked to him, but said that he would work with me to find a balance.  The problem is, I don’t know how to act like everything is normal.”

“I don’t know either. I’ve been trying to keep this in... I’ve been so afraid that you would find out... That I’d be the one to push you over the edge.”

Anakin reached for her slowly, allowing her plenty of opportunity to push him away.  Instead, she tucked herself under his arm. “No matter what happens, Ahsoka, no matter what I do, it isn’t your fault. You have done everything you can for me. It is up to me now.  Please remember that.”

“I’ll try, master.”  The previously calm rhythm of his chest rising and falling pressed against her side faltered. “What is it?” she asked hesitantly.

“I don’t think I should be your Master anymore, Ahsoka.”

“What?” she gasped.  She wriggled out of his hold to look search his face for some trace of humor.  He was serious.

“If all this is true, the farther away from me you can get, the safer you will be.  I’m sure Master Plo or Obi-Wan...”

“No.”

“Ahsoka...”

“I appreciate you trying to keep me safe, even if it means letting go. Believe me, I know what you are saying isn’t easy. But don’t you think it should be my choice?”

“Your judgement is clouded.”

“And yours isn’t?” Ahsoka scoffed, “I’m walking into this with my eyes wide open.  I chose to stay, knowing what could happen.  I haven’t changed my mind.  If something bad happens, at least I can know I tried my best.”

“You already have. Besides, once everything comes out there is a large chance that I will be expelled from the Order.  Even if I wasn’t a ticking time bomb, I’m married and have two babies on the way.”

“Then we will cross that bridge when we come to it. Until then, I think we are stronger together.” Ahoska hesitated, unwilling to upset the tenuous peace around Anakin.

“There is something else you want to tell me,” he guessed, taking the choice out of her hands.

“Do you think you could get Padmé to come to dinner again?  I think we need to come clean about everything.  Master Windu…” She took a deep breath.  “He came to talk to me this morning.  He’s had visions of you falling.  He’s had them for years apparently… but he also saw you fighting on our side though!” she added when she felt Anakin’s panic edging up again.  “I’m not in trouble for keeping part of my visions from the Council but he wants me to at least tell the small council.”

“Do it,” Anakin said decisively.  That wasn’t entirely unexpected, considering he was planning on doing the same thing himself yesterday.

“There is more.  Master Windu doesn’t know about Padmé and the babies but Obi-Wan and I think it might be a good idea to tell the small council.  They could help us protect her from the Sith curse.  Only if you and Padmé are okay with it though.”

Anakin was quiet.  “Trust,” he said after a long pause, “You told me I needed to trust you and Obi-Wan.  I think I’m better off doing that since I have a Sith twisting my mind.  If Padmé agrees, tell them everything.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EDIT: Now with author's note!
> 
> No one is Anakin-bashing as much as Anakin :( My perception of him is that his ego has two settings: He believes he is the absolute best or the actual worst. Right now he is hanging out in the self-esteem sub-basement.  
> Yay! More Padme in the next chapter!  
> Let me know what you think!


	19. Chapter 19

Padmé cleared her schedule to come to the Temple almost immediately.  Ahsoka knew that was no small feat and wondered what Obi-Wan had told her. Perhaps it was the fact that it was Obi-Wan, not Anakin, who was making the call that made her rush to them.  Anakin was always the one that called her. 

Anakin was being worryingly passive. His lightsaber was still under her mattress and he hadn’t even asked about it.  When Obi-Wan asked how he would like the visions about him to be relayed to the small council, he had only shrugged. “Whatever you, Ahsoka, and Padmé think is best.”  He wasn’t being surly, which would usually be the reason behind such a response. He genuinely did not think his opinion should matter.  As far as she knew, he hadn’t been alone for longer than it took to walk from Master Plo’s apartment to find her in the meditation chamber since he found out, and even then, he was holding tight to their bond the whole time.  She hoped that seeing Padmé would snap him out of it.

“Are you sure you don’t want us to leave and give the two of you some privacy?” Obi-Wan offered again. 

“No!” Anakin all but shouted.  “No,” he repeated more moderately, “You will all need to decide what to do, so you might as well stay.”

Ahsoka noticed that Anakin was, again, removing himself from any decision making.

“Very well,” Obi-Wan agreed, then left them to meet Padmé and escort her to their apartment.  

Anakin thumbed silently through reports from Master Che and Knight Swan while they waited.  Ahsoka could feel how anxious he was. His shielding had been shaky at best all day.  Before she could think of anything that would reassure him, the door whooshed open to admit Obi-Wan and Padmé.  She and Anakin both jumped to their feet.

Padmé beamed at her and pulled her into a hug.  “It is so good to see you up and moving, Ahsoka!” She held her out at arm’s length.  “I would complain about not being kept in the loop but I know that transmissions can’t be trusted.”

“I’m sorry, Padmé,” Ahsoka said quietly, unable to meet her smiling face. Her recovery progress was the very least of what she had kept from Padmé.

“What’s wrong?  What’s happened?” Subconsciously, her hand went to the almost imperceptible bump beneath her dress. Ahsoka felt for the twins and felt them both strong and healthy, if a bit disquieted by their mother’s distress.

Padmé moved to Anakin and gently held his face in both of her hands.  “Ani,” she pleaded, “Tell me what is wrong.”

“In Ahsoka’s vision, I... I...” his voice cracked and he buried his face in Padmé’s neck.  She carded her fingers through his hair. Ahsoka and Obi-Wan exchanged worried looks and retreated to the kitchenette to make tea with a single-minded devotion that bordered on meditation.  Despite Anakin’s reluctance to be alone—or more accurately unsupervised—they both seemed to agree that this should be a private moment between Anakin and Padmé.  Even keeping her eyes averted, Ahsoka still felt like she was eavesdropping. 

“You can tell me anything, Anakin.”  Her voice was low enough that Obi-Wan probably couldn’t hear her over the kettle’s bubbling, but Ahsoka’s hearing was too sharp to miss it. 

“I fell to the Dark side.  I betrayed everyone.  I killed Ahsoka and Obi-Wan.” The dam had broken and words were falling from him in a jumble now.  “Our children had to be hidden from me and you... The Sith killed you and I still joined him!”

“Shh, Ani. Shh,” Padmé muffled voice murmured soothingly. Ahsoka stole a glance to see that her lips were pressed to the top of Anakin’s head.  “Not all visions come true,” Padmé said and tilted his face to meet her gaze.  “You are a good person, Anakin,” she said, stressing every syllable. “I don’t know what made you fall, but I don’t believe that you could make that decision with a clear mind.”

“That’s the problem isn’t it?  I can’t trust my mind. How can I be trusted?”

“Then we’ll get you help,” she said confidently.  Ahsoka was once again floored by how Padmé seemed to take everything in her stride. “Let’s sit down and talk to Ahsoka and Obi-Wan.  They will help us make a plan.”

They took that as their cue to stop pretending to be busy and returned to the sitting area with the tea tray and a plate of meticulously buttered bread slices.

“Okay,” Padmé said when they were all gathered around the caf table.  “I suppose we will get right to the root of it. What leads up to Anakin falling?”

Ahsoka looked at her blankly. What had been the start of it?  The slow slip into darkness had begun before she’d even met him on Christosis.  “I believe the seeds were planted a long time ago.  It really got bad after the Chancellor faked his own kidnapping by Dooku and Grievous. Anakin had Dooku disabled, but the Chancellor demanded that he kill him then and there. He did. Then he started sending Anakin nightmares of you dying in childbirth.  He promised Anakin the power to save you and the twins, even to reverse death, if he joined him. Anakin told the council that Palpatine was the Sith Lord and they moved to arrest him. He was... surprisingly skilled. He immediately killed all but Master Windu.  When it became clear that Windu was going to kill rather than capture the Sith, Anakin cut off his saber arm and Palpatine threw Master Windu from the window.  Palpatine then promised again to save your life and Anakin... he agreed. He was convinced, or maybe he convinced himself, that the Jedi had been plotting a coup that would overthrow the Chancellor and the Senate. The Emperor executed Order 66 which declared all Jedi traitors and called for their immediate execution. Anakin...” She stole a glance at him. His fists were balled tightly on his knees and he was slumped low enough that he was tucked under Padmé’s arm. “Anakin lead an assault on the Temple with the 501st under the control of a chip in their brains enforcing the order.  There were no survivors.”

All the color had drained from Padmé’s face. “Not even younglings?” she gasped.  Ahsoka shook her head.  “Okay... Okay. Then what happened?”

There was only one mercy left to protect by hiding the truth. Anakin couldn’t know that he attacked Padmé. 

“Anakin killed the Separatist leaders on Mustafar. He was then mortally wounded in a fight with a Jedi.  At least, it should have been a mortal wound.  I believe that somehow the Sith drained your life to preserve Anakin’s. You died after giving birth, but there was no medical reason for it.”

“I see,” Padmé said quietly.  “What do you believe we should do?”

“I have been researching the Sith curses used to transfer life Force from one to another, but I would like to consult with other Councilors and healers. This would require us to tell at least a few people about your marriage and pregnancy in confidence,” Obi-Wan said. 

“What do you think, Ani?”

Anakin shrugged. “Whatever you think is best.”

Padmé sighed. “I will do what the councilors and healers think best, so long as it doesn’t prevent me from continuing in my position. I can’t abandon my post with our democracy in such a fragile position.  Is this alright with you Anakin?”

He nodded. “They will be able to take care of you and protect you.”

“Don’t do this, Ani. I can tell you are trying to pull away, but I need you here. We all need you here.”

Anakin shook his head. “No you don’t. I’ve put you all in grave danger. I am a danger to everyone!”

“Right now you are no more a danger than Obi-Wan and I are,” Ahsoka argued.

“That isn’t true. You know it isn’t.”

“Anakin,” Obi-Wan said sternly, “Calm down so we can speak about this sensibly.”

Anakin quieted down and took deep, measured breaths. He nodded for Obi-Wan to continue.

“Padmé, I do believe that you have made the right decision to allow us to tell the council about your babies and, by extension, your marriage to Anakin.  However, you both need to be aware of the possible consequences.”

“I know. There is a reason Ani and I kept it secret.”

“I doubt Anakin will be turned out immediately, considering the danger you both are in.  However there is a chance Anakin will be expelled from the Order after the war dies down.”

“If it helps Padmé and the twins, I will accept whatever happens,” Anakin said.

“I hope it doesn’t need saying, but both of you will still have my friendship and support even if Anakin is expelled,” Obi-Wan said.

“And mine,” Ahsoka interjected.

“I suspect you have more who care about you than you know, Anakin,” Obi-Wan reminded him gently.

“I would have thrown all of this away,” Anakin murmured. “Thank you, Master.  I don’t deserve any of this.”

“But you do, Anakin,” Obi-Wan said firmly, “I only wish we could have seen the danger you were in sooner. If only I was more suspicious of the Chancellor in the beginning when you were young, instead of being wrapped up in my own grief.”

“It isn’t your fault.  I shouldn’t have pushed you away.  Your help was always there if I had asked for it.”

“Tell me what I can do to help now, Anakin. What would make you feel safe?  How can we help you trust in yourself again?” Obi-Wan’s tone was becoming pleading.

“I will keep seeing Master Plo to get the Sith out of my head but until then I don’t trust myself to be alone,” he cried brokenly, “Please don't leave me alone.”

Obi-Wan took Anakin into his arms, rocking him like he was still his young Padawan.  “I won’t.  I’m here.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. So it has been a while. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Years! I hope you enjoyed this long-awaited chapter. Please let me know what you think!
> 
> I hope everyone had a lovely festive time! As a thank you/holiday gift I have put a couple of prompt asks on my [tumlbr](https://wolf-marauder.tumblr.com/).  Check them out [here](https://wolf-marauder.tumblr.com/post/181714856421/abstract-prompts) and [here](https://wolf-marauder.tumblr.com/post/181714784891/writing-challenge-prompt-list). You can either send me an ask through tumblr or in a comment with the prompt and a character. I will post the ficlets on tumblr and here on AO3. These won't detract from my weekly-ish schedule for this story.


	20. Chapter 20

After Anakin calmed down, they sat around the table pretending the eat the bread Obi-Wan and Ahsoka had brought over.

“We need a plan,” Padmé said after a while of no one talking, “Some concrete steps.  We need a plan if you start feeling… unstable.”

Anakin hunched in on himself, scratching the back of his neck like he did when he was uncomfortable.  “Well… On Tatooine there were these detonator chips implanted in...”

“No. Absolutely not,” Padmé said harshly. “It makes me sick to think...”

“It would be the safest option. To... to end things if I become too dangerous.”

“I need some air,” Padmé choked. She had gone quite pale. Ahsoka rushed forward to guide her by the elbow to the window and propped it open.  Anakin’s matter-of-fact declaration had hit her like a ton of bricks. She could only imagine what it did to his pregnant wife. Ahsoka kept her hand on Padmé’s shoulder and attempted to pass her serenity that she herself didn’t feel. It seemed like another night of her sleeping on top of all of their lightsabers and Obi-Wan not sleeping at all was ahead of them. 

“Obi-Wan, you must see...” Anakin pressed on impatiently. Ahsoka wanted to muffle her own montrals so she didn’t have to listen. 

“No. I don’t. Who would you have holding that trigger?  Me?  Ahsoka?” 

She felt  _that_  like a punch to the gut. She had believed when she made her promise to him that she would be able to follow through, but not like this. Her certainty was slipping away. 

“You wouldn’t do it unless it was absolutely necessary.”

“I couldn’t do it  _at all._ ”

“Neither could I,” Ahsoka said. 

“But you said...”

“I meant that if you fell, I would fight you and wouldn’t leave you a slave to the Sith. I will keep that promise. A fight gives you time to come to your senses.  I never said that I would kill you in cold blood.”

“It would be safer for you.”

“I don’t care about safe!” she shouted. 

“We are not implanting you with one of those barbaric devices and that is final!” Padmé cried, “You need to stop treating your life like it means nothing!  It means everything to me!”

“I only want you all to be safe,” Anakin pleaded desperately.

“Why can’t you see that we want the same for you?” Ahsoka pleaded. 

“There are better ways,” Obi-Wan said calmly, “If you are afraid of Sith mind manipulations, you need someone who will be able to help you reenforce your mind’s defenses.”

“Getting locked up or having a literal bomb ready to go off inside them wouldn’t do anyone’s mental state any favors,” Ahsoka said testily, then added when he opened his mouth to argue, “Yes, even if it was your idea to begin with.”

“So, this is what I propose,” Obi-Wan continued, “You can be accompanied at all times by someone able to fight off mental assault.  Since you have been working in the Halls most of the time, that is as simple as having Vokara work nearby.”

“Vokara isn’t a fighter.”

“She isn’t meant to be. You aren’t being held under armed guard,” Obi-Wan reminded him, “When you aren’t working, you are usually here with me and Ahsoka anyway.  If I am called away, Plo or another Master can come stay with you or go with you wherever you need to go.”

“I think that is a very good plan,” Padmé said in relief, “Anakin?”

“If you think it is enough,” he answered.

“I do. You need support. Not punishment for something you haven’t done,” Obi-Wan said, “Ahsoka and I will bring the idea up to the small council tomorrow.”

Anakin shifted nervously.  “I’m not entirely sure they won’t agree with my first plan.”

“I am,” Obi-Wan insisted, “Besides, I am the voice of the small council and Ahsoka and I are the only ones who identities are known.  I believe that means that we hold the ace.”

“Master,” Anakin groaned, “Promise me you won’t ignore the council just for me.”

Ahsoka snorted. “Excuse me, but I think that the crack in my montral might not be as healed as I thought.  I _thought_ I just heard Anakin Skywalker tell _Obi-Wan Kenobi_ not to defy the council.”

She was pleased to see the corner of Anakin’s mouth turn up in a begrudging smile.  “You have to admit that isn’t the strangest thing to happen this week.”

“Oh, I’m not sure it isn’t,” Obi-Wan said with an eye roll, “Fine.  I will do what they say.”

“Ani, can I stay tonight?” Padmé asked, combing her fingers through his fringe, “I want to see that you are okay.”

“I’d like that… unless you need to go,” Anakin said hopefully.

“There isn’t anywhere more important for me to be.  I love you, Anakin.  Please don’t forget that.”

“We did promise you dinner,” Obi-Wan pointed out, “And so far all we’ve given you is cold tea and bread.  Why don’t Ahsoka and go and prepare something so the two of you can talk?”

 

* * *

 

 

The small council met early the next morning. As decided in the previous night’s compromise, Obi-Wan walked Anakin to the Halls of Healing before returning to their apartment to walk with Ahsoka to the meeting. 

“Before we begin, I would like to make it clear that everyone in this room speaks with equal voice, regardless of age or rank outside of this council. Furthermore, nothing said in this room leaves it, except through Obi-Wan and only then by agreement of the group.  Is that clear?”  There were nods all around, though Master Nu and Shaak clearly understood that they were out of the loop on something.

“Then perhaps it is wise to forgo titles amongst ourselves.  Those of equal rank rarely refer to each other as such,” Master Ti suggested.

Ahsoka shrank a fraction in her seat. The symbolic gesture was meant to give her confidence, but they didn’t know what she had hidden. She felt like a foolish child.

“I agree, Shaak,” Master Windu said, “That being decided, I believe Tano had more visions yesterday.”

Ahsoka blinked at him in confusion. He returned her gaze steadily and she knew he was giving her an out.  Anything she had to say could be passed off as a new vision. Only she, Obi-Wan, and Master Windu would have to know. 

“Thank you, but first I have to share information I had previously withheld.” She saw Master Windu’s approving nod from the corner of her eye, but kept her eyes on Obi-Wan.  “I believed I was protecting those I cared about and that keeping certain parts of my vision secret wouldn’t impair this council’s ability to make sound decisions.  I know now that we will need to trust each other if we are going to save the Order and the Republic.”

“What is it that you saw,  _rui’iell_?” Shaak asked gently.

“I saw Anakin fall to the Dark side,” Ahsoka said as calmly as she could manage.

“And you believed it was appropriate to keep this from us?” Master Nu demanded, “Did you not think the Order could help a Jedi in danger of losing his balance?”

“Is it unreasonable that she would fear that her master would be judged too hastily?” Obi-Wan reminded them sharply.

“You knew about this, Obi-Wan?”

_Don’t tell them_ , she thought at him forcefully.

“Ahsoka has kept nothing from me, with one exception. I requested that she not tell me my own future.  Until now, I believed that we had the situation in hand.”  Ahsoka sighed.  She knew he wouldn’t save himself, even though the truth wouldn’t help her.

Master Nu looked like she was about to rebuke Obi-Wan, but Shaak interrupted her. “The important thing is that we know now. Is there anything more that we should know?”

“Anakin and Senator Amidala are married. The senator is pregnant with Force-sensitive twins,” Ahsoka said.

“How long have you known about  _this_ , Obi-Wan?” Master Nu cried.

“I learned the truth from Anakin himself shortly after Ahsoka woke up from her coma, though I have suspected there was something between the two for far longer.”

“Jocasta, let them finish,” Mace instructed, but even he looked taken aback. “What plans have you put in place so far?  I doubt you have left your former Padawan’s fate to chance.”

“We believe that the Sith has been working his influence in Anakin’s mind from a very young age, perhaps as soon as he joined the Order.  Master Plo has begun working with him to root out any sources of Sith persuasion in his mind.”

“Skywalker has been told?” Shaak asked with interest.

“Not told, as such,” Ahsoka said awkwardly, “Our minds accidentally connected when I was coming out of a vision and he saw himself as a Sith.  My shields only slipped for a second…”

“And how has he responded?”

“His first impulse was to ask the council to imprison him.  We have talked to him at length and have decided that he should not be left unaccompanied.  I believe it is wise that he always have someone who can reinforce his shielding on hand. He wants someone who can overpower him, though I do not believe he is a threat right now. He also refuses to carry his lightsaber.  He is with Master Che now, since Plo and I are both needed here.  Truthfully, I am more concerned about what he may do to himself if left alone.”  Ahsoka winced.

“It seems like you have determined a sensible course of action,” Master Nu said evenly. “What of the Senator?”

“We fear that Sidious plans to drain her life force.  Ahsoka saw her dying after giving birth, but without medical cause.  We have spoken to the former Sith assassin Ventress and she confirmed that the Dark side does have the power to take life and strength from one and transfer it to another.”

“You spoke to Ventress?” Mace groaned.

“She has agreed to work with us, on the condition of the Jedi’s help in securing a pardon.”

“You made this deal without input from the council,” Master Windu said sternly. Ahsoka could tell he was trying to maintain composure and keep up an appearance of a united front, but she and Obi-Wan were not making it easy for him.

“I gave my word that I would represent her to the council.  I pledged my support. Not the Order’s,” Obi-Wan said stubbornly.

“She could be a valuable ally,” Shaak observed, “We should bring her in quietly and determine whether she is committed to turning away from the dark path.”

“Okay.  The two of you can organize that, since clearly one of you has a way to contact her.”

“Is there anything _else_ that needs sharing?” Jocasta looked like she had bitten into a sour citron.

“I think I have found a Sith holocron with the information on life force transferal that we need, but Ventress refused to use the dark side to open it.”

_Now_ Jocasta looked like she was about to leap across the table at Obi-Wan.  “You took a Sith holocron _out of_ the vault and were going to give it to a former _Sith assassin_?”

“When you say it like that it makes it sound like it wasn’t thought out at all,” Obi-Wan answered dryly, “I assure you that the situation was under control.  Ahsoka and I were not in any danger.”

“You brought Tano with you?” Mace blustered.

“Seeing her was my idea once Obi-Wan found the holocron.  He tried to talk me out of it.”  Ahsoka wasn’t going to let Obi-Wan take _all_ the blame.

“Then perhaps we should call you the Negotiator and not him, if he was swayed so easily!” Mace was now pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. “ _Fine_.  What is done is done.  We are not here to debate past actions.  Jocasta, do you know how to access information in a Sith holocron without using the dark side?”

Her jaw was set in a stubborn line.  “I am sorry, but it is impossible.  The Sith crystal will not respond to the light.”

“What if you healed the crystal inside?” Ahsoka asked with a sudden burst of inspiration.

“Healed it?  Once a crystal has been bled, it cannot go back to its natural state.”

“In the future I healed crystals to make new sabers when I could not return to Ilum.  I took them from an Inquisitor’s lightsaber.  They were calling me specifically though, so I’m not sure if that is why I was able to heal them.  I was able to channel the light through other corrupted crystals to disable lightsabers in combat, though.  I was going to attempt to heal a Sith data crystal, but I died while trying to retrieve the holocron.”

The masters, including Obi-Wan, looked at her in shock.  “All true masters know that there is always more to learn.”  Shaak’s voice was serene, but her lekku were tense.  “It seems that there is much you can teach us, _rui’iell_.”

“Indeed.” Jocasta was enough of a scholar that her curiosity seemed to be outweighing her former irritation.  “I believe I know the holocron you are referring to and it is dangerous.  Perhaps it would be best for you to make your first attempt with a safer crystal.  A lightsaber crystal may not have fought back, but you cannot be sure that a holocron crystal will not.”

“We will continue to pursue this,” Mace said, “If what you believe is correct, Senator Amidala and her children are in great danger.  There is little doubt that Sidious will attempt to use the children for their power, given the chance.  We will have to discuss her protection with her.  That still leaves the question of her marriage to Skywalker.”

“He knows what this could mean,” Obi-Wan said, “I do believe that it would be unwise to expel him while he is still under threat from the Sith.”

Shaak Ti nodded thoughtfully.  “I agree.  We should wait until after the threat to both of them has passed.  Then we can review the case.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super long update this time! I hope you all enjoyed it! I'm bringing in a bit of the Ahsoka novel and Rebels with the crystal thing but going a step farther with it.
> 
> As always, please tell me what you think! Reviews keep me going!
> 
> I am still taking prompts/asks on my [tumlbr](https://wolf-marauder.tumblr.com/).  Check them out [here](https://wolf-marauder.tumblr.com/post/181714856421/abstract-prompts) and [here](https://wolf-marauder.tumblr.com/post/181714784891/writing-challenge-prompt-list). You can either send me an ask through tumblr or in a comment with the prompt and a character. I will post the ficlets on tumblr and here on AO3. 
> 
> I have also uploaded the first in a fan art series of Rebels characters and things as cards of the Major Arcana of Tarot! I am going out of order since I don't know who and what I will use for all of the cards, so I started with my [fave](https://wolf-marauder.tumblr.com/post/181955524136/ii-the-high-priestess-ahsoka-tano-intuition/)!


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Easter!  
> ...Look who else is risen from the dead. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

The remainder of the meeting was far less dramatic, though arguably of wider importance.  Ahsoka gave an overview of her vision for Shaak and Master Nu. Obi-Wan and Master Nu already knew the broad strokes.  “At least there appears to be some hope,” Shaak reassured her gently, “For your master and for us all.”  Ahsoka mustered up a weak smile.

“Once more plans have been set in motion, you should try calling up visions again,” Master Nu said.

“Later,” Obi-Wan insisted, “Ahsoka needs at least a couple of days rest…”

“I’m okay,” she insisted.

“You should listen to Obi-Wan, Tano,” Mace told her sternly before Obi-Wan could even argue.  “Exhaustion will not help you when your strength is needed.”  He then pushed the meeting forward before Ahsoka could insist that she was _fine_.

Master Windu confirmed that Depa and Caleb had returned in the early hours of the morning, though neither of them said where they had been or why, as per the council’s instructions.  Obi-Wan nodded and said he would follow up with her. Master Nu reported the progress she had made in the archives, including a short cut to a total system wipe with the lone override keyed to her and the other council member’s biometric data. Once the wipe was activated, a council member would need to be physically present and alive to recall it.

Shaak’s news was less hopeful.

“I think the Kaminoans are more suspicious of me than ever,” she sighed. “I am under constant observation the moment I get off the ship. I am, at the very least, allowed privacy in my own rooms.  I elect to speak with clones in various age groups there to monitor how they are being treated.  I doubt I will be at all helpful in investigating the chips, though I am always observing what I can.”

“That is unfortunate to hear. If you are under suspicion, you are also less capable of intervention,” Obi-Wan said, “I’m not suggesting that you should appease the Kaminoans at the vod’e’s expense but...”

“Politicking,” Shaak finished, her nose wrinkled in distaste. “Skywalker suggested we position a Healer Corps frigate in the outer rim to avoid sending the wounded back to Kamino. While there, the wounded would also be able to be de-chipped and the chip cells could be sent back to the temple.  This plan has been met with approval from the de-chipped vod’e.”

Mace nodded. “Vokara will need to choose a few Temple healers in the chip procedure to deploy to the frigate. We need her here to continue the investigation.”

“I will contact the Healer Corps while Shaak talks to Vokara.”

“We should aim to have the frigate deployed with a ten-day,” Mace said, “We can also use it to support civilian healthcare in affected areas. I know the field medics are already performing those duties, but I’m sure additional help would be welcome.”

“The timeline is ambitious,” Shaak replied, “Though I do believe it is necessary. Long overdue, actually.  Vokara will need to be notified immediately.  Other troopers will need to undergo surgery as well. I’m told he procedure is straight forward for a trained healer, but she will want to observe whichever healers she selects operating and preserving the biochips.”

“It would be wise to move through command and medical first.”

“If commanders are unaffected by the order, maybe they will be able to help control their troopers,” Ahsoka agreed.  “Maybe we should also begin rotating Master Billaba’s troopers.  In case of evacuation, volunteers from her men could accompany her and Caleb.”

Obi-Wan looked at her thoughtfully.  "That sounds like a good idea.  Now, unless there are more pressing concerns, Ahsoka has a meeting with Vokara and our meeting's time window is drawing to a close."

 

* * *

 

 

“What did they say?”  Ahsoka could tell that Anakin was trying to sound nonchalant leaning against his lab station, but his grip on the bench top behind him gave him away.  The material threatened to buckle under his mechanical grip.

“They agreed with us, Anakin,” Obi-Wan answered, “You, Padmé, and the babies will have the Order’s full protection.”

Some of the tension left his shoulders.  “I guess the lack of Temple guards should have given that away.  They weren’t too hard on you, were they?”

“More exasperated than anything else, but we are all on the same page now.  You don’t have any other questions?” Ahsoka could hear the leading tone in her own voice. She had expected a barrage of questions.  Or at least, she would have a couple of weeks ago.

Anakin shrugged. “The less I know...” 

“Any good news on your end?” Ahsoka wanted to avoid what could quickly devolve into the Skywalker Self-Recrimination Hour.

Anakin gestured to the stack of flimsi on his desk. “Vokara seems to be making headway on the anti-chip cell virus.  I’ve knocked out the relay on one of the chips without frying the data memory so Bultar can decrypt the code.  Now I’m trying to reverse the signal frequencies on another one so we can transmit the retraction code when we know what it is.  We are making progress.” His hand was in his hair like he wanted to pull it out. 

“But not as fast as you would like?” she guessed. 

“The walls are closing in on us, Ahsoka. Every day we wait is too long. It can never be fast enough.  And we can’t rush because if we make a mistake it could be the last one any of us ever make.  Or we could hurt the troopers accidentally with an untested ‘cure.’”

“You are doing the best you can,” Obi-Wan assured him, “And I don’t know anyone who could do better.”

Anakin snorted, but didn’t argue. 

“Well, I have some news that will cheer you up.  I had my check-up with Master Che and she said I am cleared to resume training!”

“I believe she said that you were cleared to resume  _light_  katas, low-impact strength training, and swimming,” Obi-Wan interrupted with an eye roll.

“That is great news, Snips!”  Ahsoka could tell he was happy for her, but even good news couldn’t quite break through the depression and anxiety hanging over him. 

“So... want to go train with me?”

“Now?” Anakin waved helplessly at the sized-up scale model of the chips’ transponder relay. 

“Yes, now!  You could use a break. Right, Obi-Wan?”

“Listen to your Padawan, Anakin.  The meditative katas will be good for you.”

With a bit more cajoling from Ahsoka and encouragement from Obi-Wan, Anakin accompanied them to one of the training salles.  Obi-Wan studied reports on his data pad from a corner, occasionally reaching out to them to check in on Ahsoka’s physical health and Anakin’s mental well-being. 

Anakin and Ahsoka moved through the slow, sweeping movements of the basic katas approved for Ahsoka by Vokara.  The Form I Shii Cho kata was familiar, one of the first every youngling learned.  Her mind easily relaxed into it, though her body struggled.  Moving at half-speed made her muscles shake with exertion.

Initially, Anakin’s shields were too strong for her to connect with at all.  It felt like he was in the opposite side of the galaxy, rather than a few meters away.  With some quiet encouragement from Obi-Wan and her own gentle prodding, he opened his mind to her a fraction.  Even the small crack in his defenses allowed a flood of fear to escape that threatened to unbalance her.  Her firmly reinforced shields main

Obi-Wan intervened, gently teasing out the tangled threads in Anakin’s mind. Ahsoka kept her shields tight and maintained a mental distance, afraid that an inadvertent connection would only serve to set Anakin back even farther.  As his fear was slowly released, they were both able to relax into the movements.  They kept at it until Obi-Wan noticed her legs shaking.

“I think that is enough today.”  He handed Ahsoka a towel. 

“But Master...” she protested.

“You can’t over-do it on your first day back. Vokara will put you on bed rest and she will never let me hear the end of it.”

“Listen to gramps, Snips,” Anakin chuckled.  Moments later her sweaty towel was sailing towards his face in retribution. He pushed it back to her before it could make contact. She deflected it to the with a lazy flick of the wrist.  “Nice one,” he praised. 

“If you children are quite finished,” Obi-Wan sniffed, “It is time for lunch.”

Anakin sighed. “I should get back to the lab...”

“I’ve already ordered. You know how I hate to waste food.”

“But master...”

“No buts, Anakin.  You can tell us more about what you’ve been working on while we eat.” He smiled warmly. “I think you will like what I’ve ordered.” 

 

* * *

 

 

Ahsoka smiled at Anakin’s delight in seeing the bag of take-out from one of Coruscant’s few outer rim restaurants waiting by their door.  They were both ready to dig in but Obi-Wan shooed them away.  “Shower, then food,” he scolded, “I can smell you both from here.”

When they returned, Obi-Wan had spread out the take out on the table and set out plates and forks.  He ate directly from a carton that probably contained one of the least spicy items on the menu.  Anakin teased him mercilessly for it while he loaded his plate with meats and vegetables swimming in sauce. It sounded more like he was reciting memorized lines, but it was at the very least approaching normalcy.

Obi-Wan sniffed. “I’m convinced neither of you actually like food that spicy. It’s just that neither of you want to be outdone by the other.”

Ahsoka helped herself to a few of the dishes she recognized from missions to Tatooine with Anakin—food was one of the few parts of his early childhood he would acknowledge—and from previous meals from this particular restaurant.  There was bantha stewed in a red pepper sauce and even desert snake fermented with vegetables in vinegary hot sauce.  She scooped out a generous helping of each over a bowl of rice.

Soon, both she and Anakin were surreptitiously wiping at running noses and watering eyes.  Obi-Wan rolled his eyes in amusement.  “I’ll go get the yogurt.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the unplanned hiatus. Work and life have both been super busy lately and my motivation to write has been sort of fleeting.  
> I am thinking about going back and making some timeline changes, but I will put it in the AN of the new chapter when/if I do. Thanks for sticking with me. Reviews are greatly appreciated!
> 
> Follow me on [tumlbr](https://wolf-marauder.tumblr.com/) for updates!


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ventress cuts a deal. There are hard feelings all around.

Despite meeting them willingly, Ventress fixed Ahsoka and Obi-Wan with a skeptical air.  “How do I know this isn’t a trap?”

“You don’t,” Ahsoka said plainly, before Obi-Wan could open negotiations. They didn’t have time for him and Ventress to dance around each other. “You only have our word, for whatever you believe it’s worth.”

“I will accept your word, Tano, as I believe  _Master_  Kenobi’s has depreciated in value.”

“It hasn’t to me,” Ahsoka snapped.

Ventress shrugged. “I can’t help that you are a fool.”

Ahsoka took a deep breath to release her frustration.  “Are you coming with us or not? If you don’t want our help, fine. But we have fulfilled our obligations.  There might not be another chance like this.”

“I never said I wasn’t coming.”  Ventress sauntered past them. “Come along now, Jedi. I’d rather not show up without you, but it’s not like I didn’t storm the Temple because I don’t know where it is.”

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes and followed after Ventress, who Ahsoka was  _sure_  was purposely exaggerating the sway of her boney hips.

They were met in the hanger by Master Windu and two temple guards.  The light from their activated lightsaber pikes cast an eerie yellow glow on their blank white masks. A thread of fear reached out through the Force before it was ruthlessly pushed down. Ahsoka turned back to Ventress who was somehow paler than usual, though her smirk was firmly in place. 

“Surely this isn’t all for little old me?” she drawled.

Mace scowled. “You will come to the Council Chambers immediately for questioning.  Have you surrendered your weapons?”

“Well, you know what happened to my sabers since one of your darling little Padawans nearly killed me for them. Kenobi has my blasters.”

Obi-Wan nodded in confirmation.  Mace raised a skeptical eyebrow. “And the vibroblades?”

Ventress gave a mock-scandalized gasp. “ _Master_  Windu, you wound me.” She crooned over Mace’s title in a way that made Ahsoka want to throw up in her mouth.

“The vibroblades,” he repeated impatiently.

“Oh, I gave those to Tano.”  Her voice was overly saccharine, but the threads of fear were there again. Ahsoka knew how naked she felt without her weapons and tried to pass Ventress some reassurance. She was met only with shields slammed in her face and a scowl thrown over Ventress’ shoulder.  _Fine then_.

They walked to the council chamber in silence—including the very uncomfortable ride in the turbo lift.  The temple guards made no attempt to restrain Ventress, but stayed one on either side of her just in case. Master Windu lead the way, while Ahsoka and Obi-Wan brought up the rear. Ventress was effectively boxed in.

They left the guards standing at the inner door to the council chamber. “Try to be on your best behavior,” Obi-Wan implored before they entered.

Ventress smirked.  “We both know that isn’t very good.”

Master Windu took his seat, but Obi-Wan remained standing by Ventress. Ahsoka stood behind his usual chair.  “Masters,” Obi-Wan greeted the room politely with a slight bow. Ventress said nothing. Her eyes were focused on the wall above Mace’s head, her arms crossed over her chest.

“Master Kenobi,” Mace answered.  “You have brought the Sith assassin A...”

“Former,” Ventress interrupted sharply, “And I brought myself.”

Mace nodded slowly. “Very well. You have  _accompanied_  the  _former_  Sith assassin Asajj Ventress before the council because you believe she has information that would be valuable in uncovering the Sith plot.  You have volunteered to represent her before the council. Is this true?”

“It is, grandmaster.”  Ahsoka felt a pulse of surprise from Ventress.  Obi-Wan must have too, because he spared her a rather smug glance. 

“Ventress, you have come out of your own free will, correct?”

“That’s right.”

“You will answer all of our questions as truthfully as you are able?”

“I won’t lie.”

Mace hummed at the strategic omission, but carried on. “What do you want in exchange for this information?”

“Protection.”

“Protection?”

“From Dooku and his master. From prosecution.”

“Our political influence is limited, especially now. We will do what we can to protect you if you cooperate, but I will not make a promise I cannot keep.  Until that time comes, I suggest that you remain in protective custody here.”

“So I can sit in a cell in the temple instead of a cell in a Republic prison?  I don’t think so.”

“You will be safe here, but restricting you to quarters is the best offer we can make. You cannot expect us to forget that you have killed people we care about and caused suffering in many worlds.”

“It seemed like the only choice at the time.  I want to leave that in the past.”

“The people you hurt can’t get back what you took from them.” Shaak said cooly.  “You had a choice. The Jedi...”

Ventress’ eyes flashed in defiance. “The Jedi abandoned my master.”

“Despite what he may have told you, Dooku chose to leave us,” Mace said in a grave tone.

“Dooku is  _not_  my master.  I am speaking of one of your own. Ky Narec.”

“Ky Narec died on Rattatak,” Master Mundi said incredulously. 

“I know,” she growled, “I was _there_. He raised me as his Padawan for over a decade when he was stranded on that hellhole. The Jedi abandoned him, but he still believed in them. He died believing the Jedi would help us. A pirate shot him in the back, so I killed the bastard and every other crime lord I could find.  I stopped waiting for Jedi to save me.”

“And you became exactly what you wished to protect yourself from,” Depa pointed out.

“I know,” Ventress cut her gaze toward Depa only to return just as quickly to the spot over Mace’s shoulder, “But I know that I am not the only one in the room to have fallen to Darkness.”

Ahsoka couldn’t see Depa’s face from where she was standing, but Mace’s eyes darkened.  “No one here has dedicated years of their life to it.  You say that you wish to move away from the dark, but how can we trust that you won’t turn to it again the next time you are tempted?”

“Because I know that everything the dark promises is a lie. It tempts you with everything you desire, but it leaves you with nothing.  Since my master died, I have been a slave to my hatred and my fear.  Even with all the power the dark side gave me, all I have gained is more hatred and fear.  That is no way to live.”

Obi-Wan cleared his throat. “Ventress is not here to be put on trial for her crimes.  She has come to us offering information and has asked for safety in exchange.”

Yoda nodded slowly and finally broke his silence. “Easy, it is, to show compassion for the compassionate.  A cry for safety, a Jedi cannot ignore from anyone. If changed Ventress is, through her actions we will see.”  He fixed his large eyes on Ventress. “Understand why we cannot allow you to roam freely among our younglings and our wounded, you must.”

“I do.”

“Another option, there is. If paired with another Jedi you are, safe you and others will be, and good council you may find.”

Obi-Wan gave a short bow. “Thank you, Master Yoda.”

“And who do you suggest for this task, master?” Mace asked wryly.

“A few ideas, I have. Until then, in quarters she shall remain, unless accompanied by me, she is.”  His ears twitched in amusement when he turned back to Ventress. “Fair, do you think this is?”

Ventress looked like a feather could knock her down.  “I guess so.”

“Of course, all this is dependent on your cooperation,” Mace said sternly.

“Fire away,” Ventress said.

“Do you know who Dooku’s master is?” he asked.

Everyone in the room was hanging on her answer, only to be disappointed.  “No.  He only talked to Dooku.  I know he is powerful in the Senate.  We couldn’t have worked so effectively otherwise.”

Mace continued without break.  “Do you know how a darksider may steal someone’s life force?”

Ventress gritted her teeth.  “I already told Tano and Kenobi that I didn’t know how to do it, only that it could be done.”

“Neither Dooku nor Mother Talzin taught you how to protect yourself from it?”

“I don’t think either one cared for me as anything more than a tool, so no.”

“Were you ever taught anything about Darth Nihilus?”

“No.”

“Did Dooku ever tell you about a plan to kill all the Jedi?”

“No.”

“Do you believe Dooku would turn on his master?”

“If it was in his best interest, sure.  He didn’t tell me if he was planning on it.”

“Do you have _any_ information that could be of use to us?  So far I haven’t heard anything we didn’t already know.”

Ahsoka felt a spike of fear from Ventress and almost pitied her.  She bristled like a nexu kit backed into a corner.

Obi-Wan folded his arms inside his sleeves.  “If she doesn’t know, it is better that she tells us so.  Do you want a fabricated answer to placate us, or the truth?”

“Only the truth,” Yoda said calmly, “Visited Dooku’s villa in Serreno, you have?”

Ventress relaxed a modicum.  “I have.”

“Advice for a way in, could you give us?”

Ventress nodded slowly.  “Yes… I believe so.”

Yoda clasped his little clawed hands before him.  “Valuable your assistance in this matter would be.  Important data Dooku has stored in his villa, think you?”

“He would want insurance in case his master turned on him,” Obi-Wan offered.

Yoda hopped down from his chair and gestured for Ventress to approach him.  “Follow me you will.  Much to discuss, we have.”

Ventress looked around at the Jedi surrounding her, as though waiting for someone to protest.  Ahsoka found herself holding her breath as well.  No one looked particularly happy, but no one offered an argument either.  Yoda paused at the door to send her an expectant glance.

“A thank you would not go amiss,” Obi-Wan teased lightly.

Ventress huffed.  “You’ll get a thank you when I know that your plot isn’t going to kill me.”  She threw Ahsoka a sarcastic salute before slinking away after the ancient master.

“I have a bad feeling about this,” Mace sighed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope the Ventress chapter lived up to expectations! Yoda was a surprise stand out in this chapter. He is working through some guilt about being quick to judge. And he probably knows Dooku has a stash of dirt on Palpatine somewhere and Ventress can help him find it.  
> I haven't read Dark Disciple, but I have heard the broad strokes of what's in it and Ventress' monologue is a riff off of one of her quotes from the novel. Besides that I embellished the backstory canon gives us (thank you wookiepedia).  
> Please let me know what you think! Reviews keep me going!


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